


Shells, Bells, Spots, and Tails

by SilentlySlipping



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Crush swap, F/M, Fluff, I'm really just having fun, Love Triangles, Maybe - Freeform, Miraculous Ladybug AU, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, My First Fanfic, Not Canon Compliant, Post-Animan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-31
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-04-16 02:51:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 24,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14155047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentlySlipping/pseuds/SilentlySlipping
Summary: Nino's date with Marinette was NOT going well, and to make matters worse, someone had to piss off the panther and so an akuma cut the whole thing short!Now Nino know's about Mari's crush on his best friend, and he's not sure what to do. Its only a matter of time before he loses his chance with the girl of his dreams.





	1. The Animan Mess

**Author's Note:**

> Miraculous AU where Nino doesn’t fall for Alya during Animan and Adrien and Nino end up as Rivals >:D
> 
> This was originally posted to my Tumblr @lechatsmiao, feel free to follow me for updates and yanno, to hear when a new chapter gets put up and stuff. 
> 
> Basically I adore Nino and wanted to have some fun with his character and this idea came so I ran with it. Fair warning, this is just the first chapter so theres a lot of set up and exposition for what’s coming. Also! Apparently, the episodes have a different order depending on where/how you watch them, so for this I’m using the US/Netflix order that puts Animan BEFORE Gamer. I have the next few chapters really close to done already, but I want to see what feedback I get before I post them. <3

Chat Noir was still shaking. Did she really _have_ to jump into the mouth of a T-Rex?! He knew his lady was clever to a fault and could come up with a really solid plan on the spot- _ha! that’s a good one, he should use that later_ \- but usually when she did he caught on pretty quickly. This time he didn’t get it until it had all but played out before him. That, more than anything else, shook him to his core. He could tell his dismay must have been apparent in his face when she allowed him to hug her this time. He knows she doesn’t usually like that kind of physical affection, but he had been so scared. He couldn’t help himself.

Even now as he sat on his bed reflecting on the events of the day, Adrien felt that same fear wash over him. Losing his lady would be too much to bare. It was late though, so he rolled over and closed his eyes to the quiet sound of Plagg snoring on his pillow. He would talk to her as soon as he could, for now he needed to get to sleep. Nino’s date with Marinette had completely fallen apart and he knew he would have to comfort his best friend the next day, and he wanted to be as well-rested as he could be.

 

* * *

 

Nino wasn’t really the type to get upset. He prided himself on his chill-guy attitude and worked harder than he would like to admit to keep up that facade. But today he had really made a leap of faith- faith in his best friend, faith in his luck, heck faith in himself- and it backfired horrifically. Ladybug had locked him in a panther cage with Alya for the better part of the afternoon. He had already been bummed that his date had been so awkward, but in talking to Alya to pass the time he learned just how hard it was going to be to win the cute designer’s heart. You see, Alya let slip (completely by accident while explaining why she was even there) that Marinette had a pretty big crush on his best friend. He knew she didn’t mean to, she spent the rest of their time in that cage trying to cheer him up about it after all, but it still stung. He never thought he would have to compete for someone’s affections- that didn’t really jive with him if he was honest- let alone his best friend, but it left him feeling all kinds of confused. Had Adrien known? Was the date and the help and everything just a show? How would he ever compare to, like, a real actual model?? Nino sighed. He _had_ considered the fact that Nathaniel might be “competition”, and he had already decided that he wasn’t going to let himself get upset enough to potentially be akumatized a second time after what happened to Nath.

He shivered at the thought of having hawkmoth’s voice rattling around in his head again. He wouldn’t let that happen. Come to think of it though, Adrien hadn’t been particularly concerned about Nathaniel’s crush, had he? Nino couldn’t think of any reason why someone _wouldn’t_ like Marinette, but maybe his friend hadn’t caught on to how great she was just yet? Surely he wouldn’t have helped him this much if he liked her too, right? He sighed again, this time more resolute and confident. He would just have to show Marinette how great he was before Adrien got the chance to sweep her off her feet. Nino laughed to himself quietly as he turned on his playlist and got ready for bed.

“Tomorrow is going to be a long day.” He sighed to himself, still chuckling lightly as he crawled into bed.

 

* * *

 

Nino- not forgetting that despite his new found knowledge, he had Best Friend Duties- stood as casually as a person in his situation could outside the school as he waited for Adrien’s chauffeur to drop him off. His headphones were bumping his newest mix as his eyes wandered across the street to the Dupain-Cheng’s Bakery. He mused idly about the girl (probably still fast asleep) that lived in the floors above it.They had been very close all through their school years and a little before too, so it wasn’t uncommon- in the previous years- for him to hang out in her parents kitchen over lunch or to find him chilling in her room while they worked on home work. He chuckled to himself as he realized just how badly and how _long_ he had been crushing on her.

“Nino! Good morning!” Adrien’s greeting had shook him from his musings and he optedfor his usual grin as he removed his headphones to greet his friend.

“Hey dude! Good morning!”

“I’m really sorry about yesterday, Nino. The Akuma showed up and I didn’t even think to make sure you were okay before running off.” Adrien looked nervous and unsure, scratching the back of his neck as he apologized. Nino tried to resist the urge to chuckle and failed miserably.

“Hey man, don’t apologize for trying to stay safe! Ladybug showed up pretty fast. She ended up putting me in the panther cage with Alya- which yanno doesn’t _sound_ like a safe place saying it out loud but the panther was long gone by then and... yanno it was chill” Nino caught himself rambling and cut himself off. (Come on man, we don’t even know if he’s into her yet, we can’t start acting all weird around him. Pull yourself together, Lahiffe!) His mental chastising was cut off when he saw the look on Adrien’s face.

“What’s wrong dude?”

“Well, if you were put in the cage with Alya, where did Marinette end up? Is she okay?”

A cold wave ran down his spine. He hadn’t even thought of that. Oh god. How could he claim to have feelings for this girl if he didn’t even think to check on her after an Akuma attack?! Oh god oh man. Before either of the boys realized what was happening Nino was sprinting across the street and into the familiar bakery. He was stopped by Sabine’s cheerful smile as he burst in.

“Oh! Nino, it sure has been a while since we’ve seen you around here, darling. What’s wrong?” She smiled at him, he had known them for so long that for a while their home was just as much his home as his parents’ apartment.

“Oh, uh, hi Mrs. Mom, I just wanted to make sure Marinette wasn’t late today, can I go up?” He hadn’t planned this far ahead. Heck man he hadn’t planned at all, but here he was so he needed a decent excuse.

“That’s so kind of you, with any luck she should be awake by now, you can let yourself in dear, and help yourself to the croissants in the kitchen” she smiled warmly at him as he nodded and led himself through the bakery up to their apartment.

 

 

* * *

 

Adrien just stood in the steps slightly dumbstruck as his friend bolted away at his question. Well, at least he was as in the dark as Nino had been. But he hadn’t expected that reaction at all. After all, even if she had been hurt, Ladybug’s cure would have helped her right? He sighed as he realized that this must be the crush in action. Chuckling he dug out his phone to text his friend.

 

**[A- so is she okay???]**

 

**[N- yea yea it’s cool]**

**[N- im gonna wait here and walk with her to class]**

**[N- want me to snag u a croissant?]**

 

**[A- uh HELL YEA]**

 

Adrien laughed to himself as he put his phone away.Well, at least she’s okay. He couldn’t judge Nino for acting as strongly as he did, after all if anything he would be worse if it had been him and Ladybug in that situation.

 

* * *

 

School was uneventful, save for the rare sight of Marinette in class _before_ the bell rang. Though Alya had to admit it was funny watching the boys in front of them, knowing what she knew. She was an excellent reporter, thank you very much, and she knew that there was a funny situation unfolding in front of her. Their whole day had been punctuated by Nino turning around to gaze at Marinette, realizing she was looking longingly at the back of Adrien’s head (as usual), and then shooting daggers at his friend’s profile before turning again to look at his notes. She found it all hilarious, but if she was being honest with herself she wasn’t sure which boy to root for.

She considered herself fairly good friends with the both of them at this stage, as their seating arrangement had the four of them working together on nearly every group assignment sent out. She knew about Marinette’s infatuation with Adrien, she knew about Nino’s crush on Marinette, and- though she hadn’t told anyone- she even knew about Adrien’s love of Ladybug. She fought back her snicker as she remembered his fanboy level fascination with her favorite spotted heroine.

Now, obviously she wasn’t obligated to take a side on this matter, but she cared too deeply about Marinette to not invest herself in her best friend’s silly little love life. She wanted to know who would be best to her friend before she was undoubtedly asked for assistance from anyone involved. And as the resident Best Friend, she knew it would happen eventually. For now, she reasoned, she would just sit back and observe.

 

* * *

 

Adrien was stressed. Yesterday has been an emotional rollercoaster and today he couldn’t shake the feeling that Nino was upset with him. Everything has seemed fine this morning, Nino even seemed grateful about how it had all played out. But once they had all gotten situated in the classroom he was all too aware of his friend’s odd attitude shift.

 

He sighed. That was a mystery to work out another time. Tonight he had promised himself that he was going to talk to Ladybug. He wasn’t sure what would come of it, she usually rebuffed his advances pretty thoroughly, but he felt that he had to say something. He had been so worried about her yesterday. Maybe confessing to her would keep her from being that reckless in the future? Maybe it would release some of the tension he had been carrying lately? He really didn’t know, but he had decided to listen to his gut this time, and he didn’t plan on backing out now.

 

It was with that determination that he landed on their usual meeting place to wait for his lady. They patrolled the city every other night, like clockwork, only occasionally calling it off if there had been an Akuma that day. It was a nice chance for him to stretch and escape the stresses of being Adrien _Agreste_ for just a little bit and he relished in it. It was a cool, comfortable night and he would never tire of his city, peacefully sparkling under the cloudless sky. He stood when he heard the tell-tale zipping of a yo-yo getting closer.

 

“Good evening, M’ladybug.” He smiled dipping into his usual bow.

She giggled at his antics “Hi Chat” she replied with her usual good-natured smile.

“My lady, could we _chat_ for a minute before _paw_ -trol” okay so maybe he uses puns to hide how nervous he is, but at this stage they’re really just a part of his shtick so it’s not like anyone can really call him on it right? Besides they seemed to be growing on her.

 

She giggled at that travesty, the actual angel she is, before nodding “I don’t see why not, we’re both early tonight as it is.”

 

* * *

 

Five horribly awkward minutes later found Ladybug zipping through the city faster than she had in a while. With a soft thud she landed on her balcony, thoroughly disappointed with herself.

 

Marinette was not proud of how tonight had gone.

 

She was horrible at dealing with this type of thing. It had come so far out of left field that she had frozen up on him. All she could remember of her dear partner’s confession was a squeaked “I’msorryIalreadylikesomeoneelse” and her zooming away without even actually going on patrol.

 

“Tiiikkiiiii, what is wrong with meee” she groaned into her pillow. She had already toyed with the idea that he might not have been completely joking this whole time, but she had so adamantly refused to think about that, that tonight had completely shaken her. Drawing her from her messy thoughts was her Kwami gently stroking her temple with her tiny hands.

 

“Oh Marinette, there’s nothing wrong with you, silly, you were surprised and startled, that’s all” Gosh, why was Tikki so good at comforting her? Maybe it was the multiple millennia that she’d been doing this kind of thing. Marinette decided not to think about that. Instead she sat up.

“I’m going to have to apologize to him. I can’t imagine what he must be feeling right now.” She sighed dejectedly looking to Tikki for support.

“I agree. But you two are partners, Marinette, I’m sure he will understand. You’ll see. But for now, you should do your homework and get to sleep.”

 

All she could do was smile sadly at the little god. She knew what she had to do, but that certainly didn’t make it any more comfortable. And she definitely couldn’t tackle that tonight.

She crawled out of bed and went to settle in at her desk to finish her homework from today. It was nothing too major and she knew it wouldn’t take her long, so- following Tikki’s advice- she dug in without complaint.

 

Ten minutes in, she was startled back to reality by a soft tapping at her window.

 

* * *

 

Well at least..... yeah no, that wasn’t good and he couldn’t lie to himself like that. Adrien had more or less prepared himself for everything. Soft rejection, hard rejection, getting thrown off the roof, laughter, almost everything. But the one thing he has not prepared himself for was her already having feelings for someone. It was so easy to forget, while vaulting and gliding over the rooftops of Paris, that she was a normal person under her mask, same as him. He wasn’t upset. Not really. Just, well, disappointed that he hadn’t taken this possibility into consideration. He was worried, however, about the visceral reaction she had. It was out of character for the Ladybug he knew to be caught so off-guard, to be so frightened of something. And yet he had seen her face, it had contorted into fear so quickly. That confused him. He wasn’t surprised by her quick departure. No, that at least, was par for course as far as his worst-case-scenario preparations were concerned. But the fear stuck with him.

 

He had taken off shortly after she did to complete their patrol route. After all, he was fairly certain she had gone home, and he just wasn’t quite ready for the cold quietness of his room just yet. His mind, however, had not been invested in the patrol. So it was to his surprise when he found himself on a rooftop across from the Dupain-Cheng Bakery. He stood for a moment contemplating a visit to his friend’s balcony. She had never minded before, and had always gifted him with pastries when he had shown up. He could understand how his best friend could become enamored with her. She was kind, generous, caring and brave when it came to standing up for her friends in their class- even if she clammed up when Adrien tried to talk to her. He sighed, she wasn’t like that with anyone else, not even his own alter ego, but he struggled to figure out why. With a shrug he decided he would pay her a visit. After all, pain-au-chocolat was good medicine for a broken heart, and who knows, maybe he could plant some seeds to make sure his best friend wouldn’t get rejected too.

 

With one smooth leap he was across the street. He lowered himself on his baton so he could gently knock on her window. He chuckled when she jumped and upon getting her attention motioned to the balcony. She nodded and he hoisted himself up to meet her.

 

“Chat noir? What are you doing here?” Her voice was quizzical but it dripped with something he couldn’t place, though it reminded him oddly of guilt. Shrugging it off, he replied.

“Hey Princess, I’m not having the best day, and I figured some quality time with my favorite civilian might just help me out of the funk I’m in right _meow_ ” he smiled gently, deciding he didn’t want to unload on her right away. She seemed off after all, and he didn’t want to ruin her night too, if he could help it.

Her shoulders released a bit of tension he hadn’t realized she had been holding there and she smiles apologetically at him.

“Of course. Here, come inside, it’s a bit chilly out tonight”

 

He followed her through the trap door and down into her room. It was a cute pink space and it was just so Marinette that it made him smile a little.

 

“I’ll go get us some pastries, make yourself at home, I’ll be right back” she smiles at him again as she quietly snuck out the hatch into the rest of the house.

 

He hadn’t been into her room before, but he found it quite cozy. He settled himself onto the chaise lounge she had and started looking around at her decorations. It was a space that he couldn’t define as anything other than Marinette, so naturally it was quite a shock when he locked eyes with himself. Slowly he realized that everywhere he looked there were posters and photos of him- well of Adrien at least. He really didn’t know what to make of it. He hadn’t taken her to be a fan, really. But as he thought about it, he reasoned that was probably why she was always so nervous around him. He was moderately famous after all, he conceded that it wasn’t that weird for people to be a little star-struck with him sometimes. But at the same time how could he call himself Chat Noir if he didn’t take a moment to tease her about it when she got back.

 

As if on queue Marinette popped back through her hatch with a plate of sweets from the bakery and two mugs of milk. She handed him his mug and the plate before sitting backwards on her desk chair and rolling over to him.

 

“So, what’s up Chat? You said you were having a bad day?” She plucked a croissant off the plate and watched him, a noticeable streak of concern painted across her face.

 

He sighed, he wasn’t really sure how to talk about it now that he was finally, you know... here and like, trying to talk about it.

 

“Well, several things, honestly, but I guess the things that’s weighing on me the most is... well, I tried to confess my feelings to Ladybug today, and let’s just say she didn’t take it well”

 

“Oh no, Chat I’m so sorry” her words were sincere, but her tone still held that same unidentifiable something. He couldn’t think of any reason for her to be guilty though so he opted to ignore it again.

 

“It’s okay, honestly. I really didn’t expect it to go over well, I mean don’t get me wrong, ,I hoped, but she cares very deeply about our identities staying secret and I can understand that a relationship wouldn’t exactly work on those terms. I guess the part that worries me the most is that things might get weird. No matter what, her friendship is important to me, and I’m mostly just worried that I ruined it because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut” he knew he was babbling and that he didn’t have to put it all out there like that, but there was something so comforting about Marinette that he really couldn’t help but trust her. So despite feeling bad about it, he dumped all of his feelings from the evening on her. He had to admit, it felt good to be able to vent to someone more receptive than Plagg, but that didn’t stop him from feeling guilty about doing so.

“I’m sorry, Mari, I shouldn’t have unloaded all of that on you.” He sighed, finally taking a bite of the chocolate pastry that had convinced him to come in the first place.

To his surprise she giggled at him.

“Chat Noir,” her tone was firm but playful, and almost seemed… relieved? “Don’t feel bad about venting to me. You can’t hold all that in, and I’m glad you trust me enough to be your confidant.”

 

“Thanks, _Purr_ incess. But enough about my woes, how was your day?”

“Oh, my day? It really wasn’t anything special. I got to school on time because one of my friends decided to come wake me up this morning, but I’m sure a school-girl’s day will never be as interesting as a super hero’s” she grinned at him, clearly joking with him to try any cheer him up. He appreciated that about her. No matter what, she always put her friends first. But this gave him an opportunity to take care of the _other r_ eason he had decided to come.

“Oh? Was it that Ladyblog Girl? Alya, right?”

“No, actually, it was my friend Nino, he was Akumatized into The Bubbler a while back, you might remember him?”

“Ah! Hat Boy! Of course, how could I forget” he was grinning now, he had the rare opportunity to help his friend and he wasn’t about to pass it up. “Are you close with Hat Boy, then?”

 

“Oh, I mean yeah, we basically grew up together. We’ve been in the same class since we started school. He’s pretty cool.”

 

“Pretty cool, huh? Do you liiiiike Hat Boy, then? I mean he walked you to school after all, that’s _pretty cool.”_ He was smirking now and he couldn’t help it.

“What? Nino, no?” For the briefest moment her eyes flitted to one of his posters.

 

He saw that.

He definitely saw that.

 

“Not Hat Boy, huh?” Oh good, oh very good, an opportunity to tease her about the posters. He really didn’t mind having a fan for a friend, but this would be so fun. And besides, every other time he had visited her balcony they had poked fun at one another, it was basically a past time now. “So what about Model Boy, I notice you’re a bit of a fan,” his grin was comically playful now. This was probably the best material he’d had for a good ribbing in a while.

 

“I!! WHAT!!ADRIEN, NO?! IMEANYES. I MEAN MAYBE? NO UH YEAH NO OF COURSSE NOT!!” he looked over and saw her face.

 

Oh.

 

She was beet red and flailing her arms, nonsensically gesturing as she denied (admitted?) enthusiastically.

 

Oh.

 

Oh. Well, this was information he wasn’t ready to process. Oh god what if Nino found out? Oh man, what if she ever found out who he was? Oh wow.

 

He composed himself quickly, deciding that he should probably go process all of this so he didn’t explode.

 

“Hahaha, you know I’m just _kitten_ around, _Purr_ -incess.” He smiled playfully and gave his farewell in his least I-Just-Learned-Something-I-Shouldn’t-Have voice, before hopping up and climbingthe stairs to get to the balcony. “Thanks for the sweets, and for cheering me up, I’ll see you around”

 

He left quickly, letting Mari deal with her embarrassment in peace, even though she was so cute when she was flustered.

 

Wait, what? No, bad brain! Oh man, he needed to get home.

 

What a freakin day.


	2. Oh.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino Has a Plan.   
> Adrien Has a Revelation.  
> Alya Has Questions.  
> and  
> Marinette Has a Pretty Good Day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, Okay, I know the last part was kinda slow and exposition-y, and unfortunately this one is a little bit too, but I got great feedback, and I have ideas that I think you'll love moving forward!!
> 
> Please please let me know what you think, I honestly LIVE for critique. Anyway, Please enjoy!

Nino had a good night. While walking with Marinette to school they decided that he would come over in the mornings more often to make sure she wasn’t late. She had been really grateful for the wake-up call that morning and happily agreed when he had offered to do it more often. He was THRILLED. The thought of seeing her again so early the next day got him through the entire day, if he was being honest. He got all of his homework done, and managed to stop working on a new set at a reasonable hour just so that he could wake up early to be there for Mari. And wake up early he did. He was in their kitchen a full 30 minutes before class- the way he figured this would give her more time to get ready and she wouldn’t be as frazzled as she had been the day before. Having already gone to do the waking, he sat comfortably at the table and ate the croissant Tom had set out just for him as he waited for her to come downstairs. It was times like these that he was grateful he was a morning person.

 

In no time at all she joined him at the table. They laughed and talked over breakfast before heading across the street to school. It was so comfortable that Nino once again had to question how he hadn’t fallen for her so much sooner.

 

They reached the steps and were joined by Alya right as Adrien’s car pulled up on front of the school. Now if you asked him later he would deny, wholeheartedly, that anything had happened at all, but in truth Nino had unconsciously put his arm over Mari’s shoulder as Adrien walked up to them. He wasn’t sure if either of their friends had noticed, but if they had, they were chill enough to not point it out.

 

Of course Alya noticed. They all did for a matter of fact. It was pathetically obvious.

 

But out of sheer force of **chill** , no one said a thing, except for Marinette who simply continued the conversation that Alya had joined about his newest jam. Man, he really did like this girl. Her chill could put his to shame sometimes.

 

They made their way into the school casually talking. Nino was so proud, two days ago he had devolved into a stuttering mess around her and man was it nice to not be so nervous anymore. He had a plan and was hyped to see it play out.

 

* * *

 

Adrien couldn’t help but notice. It was... out of character for Nino to be so... protective? Yeah, that was definitely the word he would use for what happened outside. But as he thought about it, as well as everything that happened the night before, he realized that it wasn’t exactly weird. No, Nino’s behavior just meant that his friend DID already know about Marinette’s crush.

 

Oh boy.

 

Marinettes crush on _him_.

 

Oh no.

 

The crush that he wouldn’t know about if he wasn’t Chat Noir.

 

Oh man.

 

Well, this was gonna be awkward.

 

Adrien stayed fairly quiet that morning. He still wasn’t really sure how to deal with this information. So instead of dealing with anything, he resorted to his ingrained model-muscle-memory to polite his way through the day.

 

People talked to him- of course, people always talked to him- but he couldn’t honestly tell you what anyone had said he was so deep into autopilot.

 

It was in their last class before lunch that his auto-polite sorta bit him in his ass. You see, he noticed a pencil fall from behind him, so instinctively, he went to hand it back to its owner. Marinette. Who smiled at him- blushing profusely and sputtering out small incoherent sentences trying to thank him. Of course all that _cute_ must have short circuited his system, because instead of simply saying “no problem” and turning around, he smiled and got a little lost in her eyes?

 

In all reality the whole interaction couldn’t have lasted more than 5 seconds. But for just a moment as their fingers brushed, his reality became a pink bubbly nothingness with just himself and his cute classmate.

 

Heck.

 

He turned back to the front of the class, noting that no one seemed to notice the moment he had just shared with Marinette.

 

Well, no one but Nino. And he looked mad. Yup, that’s exactly what he had been trying to avoid. Heck. For the rest of the period Adrien kept his eyes decidedly forward, but no matter how hard he focused on the lecture, he could feel two sets of eyes on him. Nino, and his dagger eyes. And Marinette. Well, it would seem he was doomed.

 

* * *

 

Oh Alya was having a FIELD DAY today. She loved her best friend, but sometimes that poor girl was oblivious. Honestly though, this was so much more fun without her noticing it. At least for now.

 

She had decided the day before that she would observe for a solid week before declaring a side, and she had every intention of sticking to that. But she couldn’t help but wonder why things seemed to be progressing so quickly. Clearly something happened, because Adrien- she’s just a friend- Agreste has looked positively enamored with her friend, something that certainly didn’t happen because of a dropped pencil. Her journalist sense was twitching and she knew there was a scoop waiting to be found. (Not that she would ever _write_ about her best friends love life, no she just wanted the deets.)

 

And it was exactly that sense that drove her to ask if the four of them could have lunch together. Nino and Mari agreed easily, as it was fairly common for the four of them to eat together, especially since Adrien’s father had stopped being such a butt about him coming home on break. She was actually impressed that Nino would sit with Adrien just so he could have more time with Mari, especially after the death glare he had been giving his “friend” all period. Adrien took some coaxing, though. But Alya, ever resourceful, had managed to convince him by asking for help on their physics homework. 

 

The bell finally rang and it was time for some reconnaissance.

“Hey Adrien, would you want to run to the cafe with me while these two find us a nice spot in the park?” She was clever, this way she could get her deets without upsetting either party or causing any undue awkwardness.

 

“Ah, sure? Why not?” The model has no clue what she was up to, but he knew that look in her eye so he didn’t dare go against her wishes. He hated to admit it, but Alya could be intimidating sometimes.

 

She just smiled in reply and got food orders from their friends before heading out.

 

* * *

 

As they made their way to their usual park, Nino couldn’t help but feel that he was walking on air. It would be a solid ten minutes before their friends got back with the food, and that meant a solid ten minutes relatively alone with Marinette. He was giddy. They laughed and talked about nothing to pass the time.

 

It was.... awkward, honestly. He was lowkey ashamed of himself. They had been friends for like nine years, why was he suddenly so awkward around her? Sure, he only had one or two solid days of being a flustered mess unable to even look at her, he was grateful it hadn’t lasted longer, but now he was struggling to find things to talk about and getting embarrassed way too easily. This was not him, dude. It wasn’t chill!! He had no chill!! Where did it go!!

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Huh what? Oh, sorry Mari, I got a little distracted, what did you say?” Great. Greaaat, dude you’re not gonna impress her if you keep zoning out man, _focus_.

 

“Oh I was just asking how you did on the last test,” she giggled at him, blissfully unaware of his quickly decaying inner chill.

 

“I did okay, it’s not going on the fridge or anything, but not bad”

 

“Well that’s good! I did better than I expected, honestly”

 

Nino found himself lost again in her positivity and kindness. She really was just too pure for this world. But his time was running out before Alya and Adrien would be back with the food. If he was going to put his plan into action he needed to do it soon. And a comfortable lull in their small talk presented just that opportunity.

 

“Hey Mari, would you be interested in studying together after school more often? I can’t remember the last time we just hung out, it’d be like old times” he concluded his proposition with one of his best goofy grins. You see his plan was to play it cool and just try to spend more time with her naturally, get to know the new teenage Marinette before coming on too strong. The way he figured, their friendship went back so far that he owed her at least that much.

 

“Yeah Nino, I think that would be fun! Mom and Dad have been wondering how you’ve been anyway.”

 

“Sweet, can’t wait!”

 

Success.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The tension released from Adrien’s shoulders as soon as they left the school building, and Alya totally noticed.

 

No, she was hyper aware of his immediate mood shift. Naturally, after all, she was an excellent journalist and this was her research.

 

“So Adrien, what’s had you so weird all day?” Okay, so maybe subtlety wasn’t her forte, but dammit she needed answers.

 

“Oh gosh, you noticed?”

 

“Of course I noticed, A) you’re my friend and B) reporter, duh.”

 

Adrien sighed, more amused than anything. She was right though, if any of his friends were going to notice it was going to be her. She was probably the most observant person he knew, and he told her as much.

 

“Thanks, kid. Now really what’s up?”

 

“Okay listen, if I tell you, it has to stay between us for now. Alright?”

 

“Hmm... Alright deal, now spill, Pretty Boy” she was clearly trying to poke fun, but her soft smile gave away her compassion and curiosity. She liked to think she could school her emotions fairly well, but she was only human.

 

“Well okay so, basically I’ve gotten myself into a bit of a mess.” He laughed quietly at himself, he knew he was going to have to skirt around some fairly important details- no way did he need Ms. Ladyblog finding out who he was. Or how often he visited her best friend at night. Oh man.

 

“I had gathered that much already. So what’s happening?”

 

“I... Nino has a crush on Marinette okay and-“

“I am already aware of the Nino situation, and have been properly briefed on its secrecy,” she cut him off with a wink before letting him continue.

“Okay so he likes her like.. a lot. And I’m supposed to be his best friend but she has a crush on ME, of all people. But the worst part honestly, is that I think I may have a crush on her too.” He had never said so many words in one breath, but he really didn’t want to be interrupted and lose the nerve to say it at all.

 

Alya’s face was like a slideshow of expressions. Beginning at amused with a touch of confusion and ending at pure astonishment with a short break at unbridled shock somewhere in the middle. She took a deep contemplative breath before responding to his threefold admission.

 

“So I have some questions, then.” Her tone was cool and calculated. She wasn’t mad, of course not, but the Resident BFF in her saw some red flags that needed addressing.

 

“Shoot”

“1- what makes you think Mari has a crush on you.” Perfect, neither confirm nor deny, but get the answers you need.

 

“Oh uh... a mutual friend of ours told me.”

“Uh huh..”

“Y-yeah, he said she’s got posters of my modeling all over her room and gets really embarrassed if you bring it up. He also said that’s why she acts different around me than everyone else.” Adrien really hoped that was a solid enough lie, but Alya was good at this game so he couldn’t be sure.

“Okay.” She left it at that- his response left her with more questions than answers, but he didn’t seem like he was going to tell all just then. Best to move on. “So then question two, what do you mean by ‘ _May_ have a crush on her,’ as far as my experience goes, you either do or do not.”

 

“Oh.” Man he had been thinking that a lot lately. “I mean, uh, y-yanno how does one _describe_ a crush?” It was a weak deflection but he had to try. It probably took the rest of his good luck for the week, but by some grace, Alya moved on to her next question.

 

“So, what about Ladybug?”

 

* * *

 

Well that caught him off guard.

 

What did she mean by that? Did she know? Was she asking Adrien or Chat Noir? He hadn’t even told Nino about his feelings for the spotted heroine. He was at a loss. Brain function momentarily stopped and before he realized what was happening he replied in a small voice.

 

“How did you know?”

 

To his horror, she laughed then.

 

“Listen, you’re talking to the woman behind _The_ Ladyblog, if you think I don’t check who’s interacting with my page you’re nuts.” She was still laughing at him.

 

Oh god. His face must have been mortified. He hadn’t even thought she would keep track of that. Well. This was embarrassing. It seemed like that was the theme of his week, actually. All he could muster as a reply was another small “oh.”

 

They walked in silence for a bit and he was grateful. They made it all the way to the cafe and were headed to the park before she piped up again.

 

“So what are you going to do?”

 

“I really don’t know.”

 

“I reccomend talking to Nino, personally.”

 

“What?! No! He would be so upset with me! He would think I was a jerk. He… he would think I didn’t actually want to help him the other day!” Surely that wasn’t the only option, right?

 

Alya paused to observe him carefully before continuing.

 

“Listen, it’s not going to be an _easy_ conversation, but you two need to figure out where you both stand. Otherwise things are going to get more awkward, more quickly.”

 

And with that she rounded the corner into the park. Adrien was doomed.

 

* * *

 

Marinette was pleased with how nice her day had gone, honestly it had been a little bit since she had enjoyed a school day as much as today. First she was on time again thanks to Nino, then she had.... whatever that moment was, with Adrien, she had gotten to spend quality time with her three favorite people (out side of her parents, and Chat Noir, of course) laughing and talking over lunch, and now she was headed home with her childhood best friend to have fun and (hopefully) get some homework done.

 

She had texted her mom over lunch about their plans to hang out, so naturally he was invited to stay for dinner and he had seemed really excited when she told him.

 

They played some Ultimate Mecha Strike 3 in the living room while her mom worked on dinner- they had all agreed that the two of them would be able to focus more on homework if they ate and relaxed a little first, and she was never one to turn down the chance to absolutely obliterate her friends. Well, her close friends at least, most people didn’t know how into video gaming she was.

 

After a nice dinner that was largely composed of Nino catching up Tom and Sabine on his life over the last year, they retired up to her room to do the promised studying. She always enjoyed Nino’s company, he was- in his words- just so chill, and she liked they way she could always relax around him. She had a lot of stress for a 14 year old girl, and sometimes it was nice to just, you know, chill out sometimes. 

 

They got a solid hour of homework in before they both started to lose their concentration.

 

Marinette was having a hard time focusing on what she was reading. She wasn’t struggling or anything, but honestly, she was bored. So she started fiddling with small odds and ends around her desk. After a few minutes of idly letting her hands play with what she found, she had a pretty nice little brigade of paper airplanes made of out sticky notes. A sly grin spread across her face as she looked to see Nino diligently scratching away at a math worksheet on her chaise.

 

They way he jumped when the first airplane landed on his paper was as though a snake had just jumped out from behind it.

 

Marinette tried to contain her laughter, she really did, but it was too funny. His hat flew off his head and if he had jumped any higher he would have gone through her ceiling. As he landed on the floor with a thump, she erupted in a fit of giggles.

 

“Maaan, what was that for?! I was in the zone!”

 

“I could tell!” She sputtered through her laughter. “But I wasn’t, so I thought I’d have some fun!”

 

Nino laughed in response, and reached for the pillow that launched the room into The Great Pillow War of 2018, as it would come to be known.

 

By the end they were both laughing, splayed out like her pillows on the floor.

 

“I think I’m going to get some snacks, I’ll be right back,” she announced as she finally caught her breath. She had forgotten how much fun she and Nino used to have.

 

As she left, Nino was still on his back chuckling to himself, but a faint thump from above him caught his attention. He was frozen for a moment, trying to figure out what that sound was when suddenly, through the hatch to Mari’s balcony, appeared none other than Chat Noir.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I Awful? Does That Cliffhanger Suck? 
> 
> Yes, and Yes. 
> 
> Will I make it up to you by having an update realllly soon?
> 
> GOD I HOPE SO.


	3. What the Cat Dragged In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir drops in unannounced on Nino and Marinette's chill time, but its honestly not a bad thing?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhangers are fun right? We all had a good time right? 
> 
> I give you resolution! Kinda? Idk stuff's happening and its important.
> 
> DISCLAIMER:   
> I KNOW ITS APRIL FIRST BUT I PROMISE THIS IS IN NO WAY AN APRIL FOOLS JOKE.

 

Adrien had been pacing.  
****

Today had been... weird. He was in love with Ladybug. _But she had definitely turned me down._ He totally respected Nino and his crush on Marinette. He really wanted them to work out. _But Marinette has a crush on me._ He didn’t like Marinette like that, but he had no idea how to push her in Nino’s direction. _Because I don’t really want to._

 

Wait. No, that was wrong.

 

Adrien shook his head to try and maybe erase that voice from his head, etch-a-sketch style. He had been arguing with himself all afternoon. So much so that even his trained expertise in schooling his features couldn’t hide his inner turmoil. His photo shoot had been a train wreck, and he had done worse during fencing than he could ever remember. For some reason, all he could think about was Marinette.

 

Now okay, let’s be real for a second, he knew she was a cutie. He knew she had a heart of gold and was one of the kindest people he had ever met. He knew that she was fierce and brave in a way he had thought only Ladybug could be. He paid attention in class- to more than just the lectures and notes- he had seen her stand up to Chloe, he witnessed first hand her compassion for Nathaniel, he knew she was always there to comfort, support, and encourage her friends. And while it used to bother him that he had never been on the receiving end of her kindness and well..... generally warm personality, he knew now that her behavior around him was probably due to her crush. But it was that last part that kept throwing him off.

 

He couldn’t really fathom why someone as amazing as Ladybug herself- no, MORE amazing than Ladybug, because she did all of that _without any super powers or obligation_ \- could possibly fall for him. Especially when the aforementioned spotted heroine hadn’t even been able to do that.

 

Oh man, he was a mess. More than anything, all his mind’s chaotic rambling had been able to do for him was solidify that he was in fact falling. Hard. And he had no idea what to do about it. If he had it his way, he would only be involved as far as being Nino’s perfect wingman, but as it was he was feeling less and less welcome in the situation, period. _And for good reason, I’m competition._ Dang it, stop that!

 

With that annoying thought process, he let out a long groan. Plagg, who had been watching with a mix of concern and amusement, finally piped up.

 

“What’s the matter kid?” In his sharp nasally voice everything sounded a little insincere, but there was a shadow of concern in his voice that Adrien hadn’t really encountered from the small god before.

 

“Do you really want to know, or is this the lead up to a request for more cheese?” There was a sarcasm to Adrien’s tone, but he was cautiously optimistic for the opportunity to have a conversation- _any conversation_ at this point- that wasn’t completely internal.

 

“You know I will never get enough cheese, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know what’s got you all worked up.” Plagg’s Cheshire grin held an unusual sincerity as he said that.

 

“I feel like a horrible friend”

 

“Okay... why?”

 

Adrien groaned again. How on Earth could he explain his problem and have it make any sense at all? He threw himself into his bed and decided to rehash his problems like he had for Alya earlier, this time fully explaining the mess that was his crush on Ladybug. Plagg was safe ground on that front after all.

 

“And Marinette’s just so great, and I know Nino would treat her well and that they could be happy together but I don’t know how to help- if I even _can_ help- and... and well lately, I can’t even convince myself that I actually want to help at all!” With one final groan he smothered his face with one of his pillows.

 

Adrien waited for the ribbing that never came. Plagg was a little too stunned by how sincere and _sincerely confused_ his charge was to poke fun at him at the time. So, instead, he opted to give genuine advice that wasn’t about cheese, a rarity neither of them really knew how to deal with.

 

“Your friend Alya is right. You need to talk to Nino,” another groan “but you also need to talk to this girl.”

 

It took another hour, and a few slices short of a wheel of Camembert, but Plagg finally convinced him that he would have to face Marinette and get her input on the situation if he wanted to know the right way to handle the ordeal. She was, after all, a major character in his new over dramatic love story. It was out of respect for her that he was racing over the Paris rooftops that night, with an urgency usually reserved for Akuma battles.

 

In his quest to finally get some resolution, he forgot nearly all his manners. He crash-landed on her balcony flushed and antsy, so without thinking he descended through the hatch right into her room, suddenly coming face to face with....

 

“Nino?”

 

* * *

 

“Dude.”

 

Nino was undeniably, inarguably, completely _shook._

 

He was rooted to his seat on the floor. His face was slack and his body was numb. _Oh god is something wrong? Is there an Akuma after Mari? Do... do they know each other?_ His thoughts were racing, and each thought, each intrusive, worst case scenario, horrible thought that came to mind hurt his head more than the last. _What is it with hot blonds and ruining all my attempts to woo Marinette?_

 

 _Okay no_ , he didn’t even know why the kitty-eared hero was here. He had no right to be mad at him. _Yet._ Besides, everyone knew Chat Noir was, like, massively into Ladybug. It was that last, sane, rational thought that finally rebooted his system.

 

“Wha- what’s up, Mr. Super Dude?” He managed to choke out a greeting, however awkward it was. Nino was all about the small victories right now.

 

“Ah, ha haha h-hey Nino.” Chat scratched the back of his neck nervously, and Nino was confused. He couldn’t think of a time he’d seen Chat Noir without a cocky grin and a quick pun. _Man something must actually be, like, really wrong._

 

* * *

 

Both boys jumped out of their skin when the hatch behind Nino opened and the actual owner of the room returned. Marinette giggled merrily at the sight of Nino jumping again but her laughter died when she saw the look on his face. He looked downright uncomfortable and it took her about 10 seconds to find the reason. The leather-clad, blond haired, _uninvited_ reason.

 

“Chat Noir?!”

 

She would probably have been more uncomfortable if this was the first time he had been in her room, but then again, she wasn’t sure it was wise to advertise that fact to Nino. She trusted him inherently, of course- being friends for nearly a decade did that for a person- but she had no idea how to explain the situation and no time to get Tikki’s advice. After all, outside of being one half of Paris’ Super Duo, he was... well, a _boy_ and the last thing she wanted was for Nino to get the wrong idea about her. She stepped reflexively in between the cat boy and her dear friend. Of course she knew nothing so silly would hurt her friendship with him, they had been through so much through the years, but she still wasn’t comfortable giving him the wrong idea. She couldn’t really explain it, but Nino’s opinion of her mattered way more than anyone else’s.

 

She had no idea what to do if she was being honest, so finally she decided to go with vague apprehension.

 

“Is something wrong?” Yeah, that worked.

 

“Oh” she noticed the hero looked absolutely caught off guard but she didn’t want to make a scene so she left it alone, “I... uh, I need someone to talk to... a-and you’re so.. _claw_ -some.. t-to everyone that you seemed like a good choice,” gosh, he sounded so nervous, so upset. Her instinct to comfort and console took over from there. She couldn’t stay upset or worried about herself when one of her friends clearly needed her.

 

“Nino, would you mind if Chat stayed and relaxed with us?” She turned to her friend and gave him a face that clearly stated that she wanted to help the poor cat but needed it to be okay with him before she agreed. (Oh man, he loved her so much dude) “besides, how often do normal people like us get to hang out with a super hero?”

 

Nino just stared at her with a love struck gaze for a moment before finally replying more to Chat Noir than to Marinette.

 

“Yeah! I don’t mind you joining in the chill fest as long as you don’t mind me, my dude. And let me tell ya, if you were lookin to unwind, there’s no better company than my girl Mari and ya boi Nino” He punctuated his sentence with the chillest finger guns the boy could muster.

 

“ _Paw-_ sitive?”

 

Nino and Marinette smiled at each other before replying in a chorus of “yeah, man” and “of course.”

 

* * *

 

Adrien hadn’t exactly gotten to spend a lot of time with his best friend lately, so he was relishing in the evening they spent together in Marinette’s room.

 

Though he had to admit, it hadn’t really cleared anything up for him yet. No, as a matter of fact, all it had really done, up until that point, was reaffirm how good he knew Nino would be for her, and more tragically, how much he really liked being around her himself. He steeled his nerves, though, because he had them both here and a level of anonymity that could be used as armor against the conversation he needed to have with them. He had to do this.

 

“Can I ask you guys for some advice?” He piped up as their most recent conversation had lulled and the latest YouTube vine compilation ended.

 

Marinette looked his way, concerned yet sympathetic, but it was Nino who responded.

 

“Course bro, I’m sure we can help you out! Besides, I think we citizens of Paris owe you that much” he winked playfully at the end.

 

Chat Noir smiled a little at his friend’s kindness. Man, he was really lucky to have people like Nino and Mari in his life.

 

“Okay, so obviously I can’t give specifics- secret identity and all- but I have a friend who’s having a hard time and I don’t know how to help him.” Sure, you could say that being in his suit removed him enough from the situation already, but he wanted to play it safe so he opted for an additional degree of separation anyway. “You see, he has a crush on this really awesome girl, and he’s pretty sure she likes him too, but his best friend has liked her much longer than he has. He- he really doesn’t want to hurt either of them but he doesn’t know how to do that. He says he feels like if he does one thing he loses one friend, but loses the other if he does... well anything else.” Adrien wasn’t surprised to see overwhelming sympathy on Marinette’s face, but it absolutely floored him to see Nino so wrecked with concern. He took a deep breath “I want to help him, but honestly? I don’t have any idea what the right move is here.”

 

They were all three speechless. Marinette couldn’t even imagine being in such a terrible position. Nino could, but, well, he hadn’t exactly considered that angle before.

 

Once again shocking Adrien, Nino spoke up first.

 

“Honestly dude, that sucks _hard._ But... if... if they’re buds they should talk to each other. And I don’t know, Mari maybe you can weigh in here, but I guess... I guess at the end of the day he doesn’t need to do anything, because like... it’s her call to make. Right?”

 

They both looked at Marinette expectantly, and not for the last time.

 

“I think Nino is right. You should tell him to talk to his friend. They both need to understand that a girl’s heart isn’t an object that can just be claimed, you know? If they value each other’s friendship, they’ll have to know that this isn’t a competition that can be won. She’s going to pick someone eventually, and I’m sure they will all be happier if... if they wait and see.”

 

* * *

 

That was the end of that conversation. Both boys felt like they had just been slapped in the face. Days now, they had been so focused on their individual feelings that neither had stopped to consider what Marinette might want. The both felt really stupid- this wasn’t like them at all. Neither of them. Silently, they both resolved to talk to each other the next day. Of course each of them wanted to be the one Marinette chose, but after what she had said, neither could bring them self to linger on that.

 

“Crap” Mari broke the not-awkward-but-obviously-heavy silence after a glance at the clock, “it’s getting really late you guys! It’s probably time to go, Nino and I have school tomorrow. I’m sorry, Chat.”

 

“Dang, you’re right. Hey, before I go,” Nino extended a hand to the cat boy, “it was nice seeing you without Hawkdouche messing things up, dude.” Nino smiled as they shook hands. His smile morphed into a cheeky grin as he addressed them both, “I’m actually doing a DJ thing at Kidz+ for that silly challenge show tomorrow, I already invited Adrien days ago, but it would be real cool if you dudes could come too! I could really use the support!”

 

Marinette agreed in a way Adrien could only really describe as ‘over enthusiastic’ and it was adorable.

 

“I’ll try my best for my two favorite _kitty-_ zens, but I’m sure you’ll do great! I’ll see you cool cats around” He smiled at Nino and Marinette before departing out the hatch with his signature two-finger salute.

 

* * *

 

Marinette walked Nino down to her front door, and gave him a big hug. She promised she would be there to support him the next day, and he walked home more excited and comfortable with his situation than he had been in a while. No matter what happened between them, he knew he would always be okay because he had the best friends in the world.

 

Now he just had to talk to Adrien. He had to set things right between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know where this is going. We all know where this is going. This isn't a spoiler. 
> 
> I'm gonna Jack with at least one more akuma before completely ignoring what canon Says. 
> 
> So like, whats the consensus, do we call him Jackady or Simon Says? What do we prefer? Let me know, or else we'll just have to deal with what I pick lmao


	4. Jackady

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jackady happens, and our three pals have a pretty weird day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I smell some actual development! Weeeee!
> 
> friendly reminder that you can catch me on tumblr @lechatsmiao ;3

 

Marinette woke up easily to her first alarm that morning, which had been a completely foreign concept to her since accepting the mantle of Ladybug. As odd as it was though, it meant she was fully dressed and almost done getting ready for the day by the time Nino showed up for his wake up call.

 

She was really starting to get used to the idea of beginning each day with a friendly face. Not to mention how proud her parents and teachers were that she was actually making it to school on time now. She wasn’t exactly sure why Nino was going out of his way to help her like this, but with all her super hero responsibilities and teenage obligations, she was beyond grateful to have one less thing to worry about. Though she would probably never admit it, she was actually a little bummed that she had woken up on her own. You see, Nino’s method of waking a person up involved a 5 minute song that she had grown rather fond of. It started very quiet, slow, and serene andgradually (pleasantly) increased in volume and intensity. He had said that he read somewhere that it was easier to wake up if a person was drawn from sleep incrementally and decided to make a mix just for her to help her wake up on the right side of the bed. 

 

She wasn’t really used to people putting so much care into something that was strictly for her. She never really liked being the center of attention, so she spent most of her time trying to make others feel special- it was an interesting experience, to say the least, to be on the receiving end now.

 

She was about to put her hair up into her signature twin tails when Nino quietly climbed up into her room. She met his surprised expression with a giggle and a small smile.

 

“Nino! Look! I managed to wake up early today!”

 

“Hahaha nice job, M!”

 

Absentmindedly, she abandoned her hair ties and walked with Nino down to the kitchen to have some breakfast and enjoy their now usual morning chit chat, Tikki zipping into her bag after Nino had descended through the trap door.

 

They left her house earlier than normal to wait for Alya and Adrien at the school. They sat on the stone steps and Nino played the track he had been working on for the show that night.

 

It was a good morning, and she was sure that had to mean it was going to be a good day.

 

* * *

 

Nino had a good enough day at school. Adrien didn’t seem as uncomfortable around him, and after the conversation he had with Marinette and Chat Noir last night, his urge to scowl at his best friend was gone. He knew he still needed to talk to him, but he figured they could do that after school.

 

It was a good thing he and Adrien weren’t at odds that day though, because Marinette has never finished putting up her hair, and everyone seemed to notice. Most of the kids in their class only teased her about it playfully, and it was enjoyable enough to watch her banter with them. Kim had been the first person that day bold enough to obviously flirt, but Mari had known Kim for almost as long as she has known Nino and flawlessly shut him down. It even earned a hilariously loud “buuurn!” from Alix. But at lunch the two boys had to work together to keep the creeps from other classes at bay. Outside of their usual classmates, the attention was clearly making Marinette uncomfortable and neither boy could bear watching her so unnerved.

 

It was honestly a relief when, after school got out for the day, Marinette announced that she was going home to fix her hair before she met them at the studio.

 

However, her departure meant that Nino was walking to the studio with Adrien on his own. Well, on his own save for Adrien’s body guard walking a few paces behind them at least. While he knew he needed to have the conversation, he had hoped it wouldn’t be so soon. It was gonna be awkward no matter what and he just plain wasn’t feeling that jive. He contemplated leaving it alone until after the show until his thoughts were interrupted by Adrien... _but what did he say??_

 

_“_ Oh, uh, I said I feel like I owe you an apology.”

 

“Oh? Dude, what for?” Nino was admittedly more anxious than he wanted to be, but at least this meant his bud wanted to talk too right?

 

“I.. I feel like I created some tension between us, and I’m sorry. I swear I didn’t mean to. I... I-I didn’t mean for.. well.. for _anything_ to come between us.” Adrien put an emphasis on the word anything that made it clear that ‘anything’ in this case was definitely Marinette. Nino sighed.

 

“Listen dude, I know for a fact no one can control how their heart works. Besides M’s amazing, I can’t blame you for finally realizing that, dude.”

 

“I know, but I don’t want you to think that I would do anything to hurt your chances with her. You’re my best friend- that would be wrong of me.”

 

“Man okay, nah you gotta let me apologize now, okay? I was majorly overreacting. It’s not like it’s your fault she has a crush on you.” _why does this have to be so weird “_ I’m sorry, my man. And hey, a good pal gave me some solid advice right? They said: no matter what, she’s going to pick someone on her own. So we can’t treat her like some object to be won in the meantime, yanno? That’ll just make things harder on all of us when the time comes. I guess I let myself forget that and was way rude to you because of it.”

 

“I’ll forgive you if you forgive me?”

 

“Forgiven. Bros?”

 

“Bros.”

 

They shared an intricate bro-shake to solidify their amends as they walked into the Kidz+ tv studio. There was less than twenty minutes before The Challenge started- _super creative name guys-_ and Nino’s nerves were catching up with him. He wasn’t sure he would be good enough. He didn’t know what his task would be, he didn’t know how many people were watching, _he didn’t even know if Mari would make it in time._ It was that thought more than the rest that had him on edge. He was lowkey counting on her chill aura to get him through this.

 

* * *

 

Marinette was glad she lived right across from the school, but she was always especially grateful for that at times like these. She didn’t really have time to fix her hair, but if she had to endure one more wolf whistle or suggestive comment she was sure she would become the next Akuma so she _had to do it._

 

She raced up to her room and styled her usual twin tails in record time. She was about to bolt out the door when her parents caught her in the living room.

 

“Where are you off to Marinette?” Her papa gave her a joking grin as she bounded down her stairs.

 

“Oh! Nino is doing a DJ thing for that show The Challenge today and I promised him I’d be there cheering him on!”

 

“That’s so kind of you, darling,” this time it was Sabine who piped up, stepping out of the kitchen.

 

“Before you go, we just wanted to tell you were so proud of you.” Her fathers smile was brighter than the lights of Paris on a warm summer night, but she was _confused._

 

“For what?”

 

“You haven’t been late to school all week! And today you even managed to leave early!” He grinned, “Tell Nino we said thank you for being such a good influence, and he’s welcome for dinner any time.” He finished his sentence with a wink.

 

“Papaaa”

 

“Okay honey, go cheer on your friend, and let him know we will be watching too!” Sabine smiles kindly as she waved her daughter off.

 

Well that was both wholly unexpected and _extremely weird._ But she didn’t have time to dwell on it, she would be lucky if she made it in time as is, and would definitely be late if she stuck around to figure out what was up. So she raced off towards the studio without a second thought.

 

She waved to Nadja as she passed through the studio lobby, and managed to make it into the appropriate studio right as the host was announcing Nino. She was just able to give him a big hug from behind a wish him luck as he walked on to the set.

 

He did great, obviously. The song he had been working on was solid and the way he manipulated it live made it even better. He was going to win it even if the host hadn’t decided to abruptly count the mayor’s mildly interested head-bob as a “dance.”

 

She and Adrien took turns congratulating him on his job well done as the next contestant was introduced to their challenge. He was a soft spoken hypnotist, and his challenge was rigged from the start. He kept trying to explain that his skill didn’t work the way the host seemed to think it did, but before anyone really knew what was happening it was being announced that he had lost- really only because Gabriel Agreste was a jerk- and the poor guy was  rudely shoved escorted out of the studio. Nino and Marinette both _knew_ Adrien’s dad was a piece of work but sometimes it really just floored them just how big of a douche-canoe he could be. They were walking towards the doors- each boy on either side of her- when they burst open to reveal a pale man in an awful outfit that could only really be described as someone who had never read a single Batman comic’s attempt at a Riddler cosplay. _An Akuma. Great._

 

_“I am Jackady! And you are Lame... lame as a duck”_

 

_“_ We need to go! _Now.”_ Nino grabbed her hand and the three of them were running through the halls of the television studio.

 

She needed a chance to get away, she needed to transform, but she also really really needed to know that her friends were safe. She had no idea what to do. They rounded the corner as an empty elevator opened. She and Nino sprinted hand in hand down the hallway, rushing to get in before the doors had a chance to close, but Adrien had fallen behind. As the doors glided closed behind them he yelled that he would take the stairs and to not wait for him.

 

* * *

 

That was good enough for Nino. He loved his best friend and would never wish anything bad upon him, but right now his sole focus was getting Marinette somewhere safe and this closed elevator was a sure fire way to do just that. Or at least he thought.

 

Mere seconds after the doors had closed and it began its descent,the power flickered and the whole thing jostled to an abrupt stop as the lights went out completely. _Great._

 

Marinette squeaked and released the hand he hadn't realized she was still holding as they were shrouded in darkness. She seemed very scared and on edge, so Nino quieted his mind in an attempt to dispel his own fear and misgivings; Mari needed to be comforted right now and he couldn’t really do that if he went and lost his chill.

 

He reached out, a hand blindly finding her shoulder as his other hand fished through his pockets for his cellphone.

 

“Hey mari, don’t worry. We should be fine here. I’m sure the elevator will be back up in no time and besides, Ladybug and Chat Noir should be here soon to deal with Monsieur Hypnotist.” His kind smile was gently illuminated by the light of his phone screen and he was able to see Marinette smile anxiously in return.

 

He pulled her into a side hug. “Listen, we’re fine, nothing can get us in here, I’m sure of it.”

 

They stood like that, shoulder to shoulder in silence, for a few minutes. It could have been longer, Nino hadn’t really been watching the clock. All he knew was that after a bit the silence was broken by an almost dejected sigh from Marinette, like she had made up her mind about something important, but wasn’t happy with her decision. _She was a very expressive person, what could he say_?

 

Nino stole a glance at his crush and noticed that while Marinette had looked very nervous for almost all of their flight away from the villain, there something new on her face now. Something very close to determination. She was frantically inspecting the walls and ceiling of their dark elevator, obviously looking for something, though just what exactly Nino wasn’t sure.

 

Finally, apparently satisfied with her search, she turned to him, her resolute expression marred by a streak of guilt and embarrassment. She took a deep breath and placed a hand on his shoulder.

 

“I’m sorry Nino, but I trust you and I don’t have any other options right now.” She stepped back and said something that sounded a lot like ‘spots on’ and there was a bright pink flash of light that momentarily blinded him in the dark of the downed elevator. Suddenly he was face to face with Ladybug and his mind blanked.

 

“We can talk about this later, okay? Just stay here until everything comes back on then wait for me in the park by my house.” She winked “bug out!” Then she was disappearing through a hatch above them that he hadn’t noticed until just then.

 

His mind was reeling. He leaned back against the wall of the elevator and slid down until he was sitting on the cold metal floor. The only intelligible thing going through his mind was _man I really love that girl._

 

* * *

 

Adrien had purposefully lagged behind. He knew Nino would get Marinette to safety, and while he wished he could have been there to comfort her too, he had a sinking suspicion that he would be more valuable to everyone as his alter ego right now. So reluctantly he watched the elevator close on two of the most important people in his life and then made a b-line for a utility closet to suit up.

 

He had seen what happened in the studio, so he was fairly certain of a few things. One: Jackady was almost definitely the poor guy who had gone on after Nino. Two: he was probably going to wreak havoc on the studio and then book it to his house to seek revenge in his father. Three: the Akuma had to be in one of his cards. And four: he did NOT want to find out what being hypnotized felt like today.

 

As he rounded the corner he braced himself for.... well anything really.

 

However, he wasn’t exactly prepared to handle this Akuma completely on his own, and Ladybug seemed to be taking her own sweet time today. He was starting to get a little anxious about his chances when he finally heard the tell-tale zipping of a yo-yo. Alright, now this would be a piece of cake. If they were lucky they would be able to take care of Jackady before he decided the Agreste Mansion was the place to be. They fought in a wonderful tandem, avoiding Jackady’s barrage of cards and his slack-jawed minions. But unfortunately, they were not very lucky today.

 

Before they could do anything to seriously stop Jackady in his tracks, he had decided his work there was essentially done. Adrien fought back many unwanted thoughts as he and Ladybug bounded across rooftops to try and at least protect Gabriel at his estate.

 

This fight dragged on annoyingly long. Gabriel was annoyingly uncooperative. Jackady’s powers were annoying. And to make matters worse, Ladybug was being weird around him. He was sure it was just because they hadn’t had the chance to talk since their last awkward encounter, but it was still annoying.

 

He couldn’t wait for this annoying Akuma to be dealt with, so he fought harder than normal.

 

* * *

 

Ladybug was relieved when the butterfly was finally cured and she felt the cleansing light wash over them and everything Jackady had wrecked.

 

This fight had been tough. The Akuma wasn’t anything special, but she felt tense around her partner since she hadn’t gotten the chance to apologize yet. She was also really worried about Nino and Adrien. Basically, she had a lot on her mind, so she wasn’t as _in_ this fight as she should have been.

 

Speaking of Nino!!! Crap, now she had _two_ important conversations she couldn’t avoid. Greaaat.

 

She decided her conversation with Nino was just a hair more ~~important~~  dire right now, so she excused herself from the scene to go find him. Chat Noir seemed disappointed, but he didn’t try to stop her.

 

She got most of the way to the park before ducking into an alley to transform, deciding that the less Nino was seen with Ladybug, the less danger he was in.

 

She found him easily. After some awkwardly casual greetings they decided the retire to her house for their important discussion.

 

Not for the last time, she cursed how awkward she was around the boys in her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, there were too many other important things set for this chapter to really justify giving you a play-by-play on this Akuma Battle. I made a point to set aside aspects that specifically happened differently, but otherwise it felt a bit redundant. 
> 
> Also is this a cliffhanger? What differentiates a cliffhanger to a reasonable pause? I dont know, apparently. 
> 
> I live for critique so feel free to hit me with those comments <3


	5. Moving Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino and Marinette have a much needed heart-to-heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the long delay on this chapter! I just moved halfway across the country so things have been all sorts of silly around here! 
> 
> But! I'm back and it shouldn't be that long between chapters again with any luck!! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!

Nino and Marinette made the short walk to her house in a slightly uncomfortable silence. Neither of them could really say what they were thinking out loud until they were somewhere private.

 

To say the least, they were both really stressed out. It’s not every day one of your best friends reveals that they’re secretly the most badass superhero you know of. And it’s not every day you’re forced into a situation where you have to leave your best friend in an elevator with your most important and dangerous secret.

 

Now that they were here, neither was really sure how they were going to handle this.

 

* * *

 

Nino let out a sigh he didn’t realize he had been holding as they made their way through the bakery and up to Mari’s apartment.

 

He had been thinking a lot that day. He knew Marinette was one of the coolest people he knew. Oh man he knew that fact _so well_. The more he thought about it the more obvious it was to him, and the more silly he felt for not noticing sooner. She was always dipping out at weird moments, and she had gotten even more spastic in this last year since Ladybug came on the scene. But more than that, he saw a hero in her anyway. She was strong and confident and she always stood up for what she believed in. This revelation, while surprising in its abruptness, actually made sense to him when he sat down to process it.

 

He had done most of his thinking while sitting in that elevator, and had more or less decided that- as long as she wasn’t mad- he was going to help her in every way he could. In and out of the mask. However, he knew she was going to be worried about him now. He knew her, and so he knew she would always put her friends’ safety before her own. And that scared the crap out of him. He didn’t know what he would do if she got hurt because of him.

 

A chill ran down his spine as he once again remembered that he had been Akumatized before. He counted himself lucky that he could only remember the moments right before the bargain with Hawkass had been struck, and the first moments after being purified. But he knew from Alya’s account of it on the Ladyblog that he had been kind of an ass. He decided it was best to not think about it.

 

They made it into her apartment and were met with Sabine announcing they were just in time for dinner. While normally he would be thrilled to eat some of the Dupain-Cheng’s home cooking, he was a little disappointed that their retreat to privacy was being delayed.

 

Dinner was nice though. He could tell that it had helped Marinette relax a little, and he had enjoyed a fair bit of congratulating from her parents. He had almost completely forgotten that they were all at the studio in the first place because he had performed on live television, and felt somewhat sheepish now that he was being faced with congratulations. He was proud of his performance, of course he was, but it all felt like such a small detail after everything else that had happened that day. 

 

He excused himself to the bathroom to check his phone and found a myriad of congratulations from his friends mixed in with a few concerned texts from his mom. He fired off a quick series of thank you’s and explained to his mom that he was safe, nothing had happened, and he was at the Dupain-Cheng’s because it had been the closest after the attack and would be staying for a bit to do homework.

 

With his notifications satisfied, and his nerves quelled for the time being, he returned to the kitchen. Apparently Mari had already gone up to her room and Sabine sent him up with a plate of cookies and sweets.

 

Here goes nothing.

 

He climbed up the stairs into her room totally unsure what was about to happen, but more ready and excited about the conversation than he had been all afternoon.

 

* * *

 

Marinette was sitting on a pillow in front of her chaise with Tikki resting on her knee. It was the most comfortable place she could think to be, and she felt like she needed all the external comfort she could get to deal with the internal discomfort she’d been carrying since the elevator.

 

“Marinette, this is fine. Nino is a good friend, you can trust him. Try not to worry so much” Tikki was doing her best to calm her charge. She knew she was the one who told her not to give away her secret, but this was an emergency. Emergencies were different.

 

To her credit, Marinette had calmed down a lot over dinner. Her parents had a wonderful way of doing that for her. But she still felt a little off. She hadn’t wanted _anyone_ to know. Of course there was the safety element, that didn’t just go away, but she was always worried that if people knew, they would either stop taking Ladybug seriously, or start expecting too much from Marinette. She was a reasonably confident girl, she knew deep down that they were the same person, but she enjoyed the separation that the _secret_ identity provided.

 

She sighed and rested her head on the cushion of the chaise behind her. Nino shouldn’t be too much longer now and she needed to be ready for anything. Questions, concerns, accusations, fangirling, worrying, dread, fear... you know, anything.

 

She sat like that for a minute contemplating the mess she was in when she heard her trap door squeak open and looked to see her oldest friend smiling shyly as he entered holding a plate of sweets.

 

* * *

 

“Hey Mari”

 

“Hey Nino, come sit”

 

Nino did as instructed and sat on the pillow next to her in front of her lounger. He sat the sweets down between them and couldn’t help but notice how normal it all seemed. Yes, there was an air of tension surrounding them that was certainly out of place, but otherwise this could have been any other evening that week. The two of them sat next to each other on pillows in her comfortable- if not overly pink- little room. He realized then that nothing had really changed. He was still Nino, and above all, she was still Marinette, and he was still hopelessly in love with her.

 

_Wow_ , he let out a breath and looked over at her again, making note of the too-large-to-be-a-bug-but-still-small red thing resting on her knee.

“So like, thanks for telling me, Mari.” He didn’t want to spend the evening avoiding the small red elephant in the room so decided to open with reassurances. Yeah. “It means a lot to know you trusted me enough, even if it was kind of a bad time.”

 

To his amazement she giggled at that.

 

“Oh Nino, of course I trust you! It’s just... a really big deal, and I wasn’t supposed to tell _anyone.”_ She sighed a very cute, frustrated little sigh.

 

“To be fair, you didn’t _tell_ me anything,” he winked and chuckled as that dawned on her and spread across her face in a small smile.

 

He loved her small smiles. He always felt that they were more special than her big silly grins or rolling laughter. It was a little thing that not just anyone could coax out of her. He had always felt that being able to do that meant they were something special, and now more than ever before, he felt that. They shared something no one else did. It occurred to him then, that this conversation was important. It needed to go well if he had any hope of.. well anything.

 

“Mari... I want to help.” He gulped down his nerves and tried to steel his resolve (to impressively good affect if he did say so himself) and went on “today was big. I don’t want you to think that I’m not taking this seriously. I am. I sooo am. And I know it wasn’t a choice you would have made in many other situations, but we’re here now, and I want to help you however I can.” -a heartbeat- “Even if that just means not saying anything.”

 

* * *

 

Marinette was at a loss for words, honestly. She knew Nino was awesome and trustworthy and her oldest friend, but she hadn’t expected him to get it- to really understand. She didn’t think _anyone_ would, except maybe Chat Noir.

 

She had gone into this with a rough plan of what she needed and wanted to say, but he took the wind out of her sails. He was being so genuine, so sincere. So... serious. It was a bit of a shock to her system, but she was grateful. Oh man, she was so grateful. This made things easier.

 

“Thank you, Nino” it was hardly a whisper, but she could tell he heard her loud and clear, as he rested his hand on her shoulder and smiled at her. It was a smile she couldn’t say she’d ever seen on his face. It was full and deep and dripping with respect and sincerity, and something else that she couldn’t place, but it was comforting and reassuring and she cherished it.

 

They sat like that, in silence, for what could have been hours but was probably only mere seconds.

 

“Nino, I trust you. I’m not sure how we’re supposed to handle this, but I know that I want to be honest with you.” And so she was.

 

The better part of the evening was spent answering all the questions he could think of to the best of her ability. She officially introduced Tikki- who had been patiently waiting on Marinette’s knee like a tiny, red, spotted elephant in the room since Nino’s entrance- she explained that not even Chat Noir knew who she was, and that she didn’t know him either. She explained the Miraculous and Master Fu. She even answered honestly when Nino inquired about her and Chat Noir’s relationship.

 

“He likes me, and he told me as much, and I ran away from him like the dumb junebug I am.” She groaned. (Nino’s heart skipped a beat) “I don’t think I can reciprocate his feelings, but he deserves an answer and I’ve been avoiding that conversation.”

 

* * *

 

Nino was fighting a losing battle against a sigh of relief. At least he knew the leather clad hero wasn’t real competition. (Or at least, not for _Marinette’s_ heart. He was in love with _Ladybug_ after all.) But as far as Nino was concerned, one green-eyed blond was enough to deal with, he wouldn’t stand a chance if both had been in the running. He managed to disguise the sigh in a natural looking cough.

 

After a pause she went on, “He... the night it happened, he was so upset. And he came here of all places.” She was clearly upset. She had that guilty, sad face of hers on. Worse yet, she looked to be on the verge of tears. He knew she valued her partner and the friendship they shared, so he couldn’t imagine how she must be feeling. He wanted to help. He wanted to fix it for her. He wanted to go explain it all to Chat himself and let them put that mess behind them. He wanted to do something, anything to bring back his giggling Marinette, but he had no idea what to say.

 

Instead he hugged her.

 

He hugged her tight and held on strong. He couldn’t form words but he needed a way to comfort her. They had never been really contact-driven friends, but this wasn’t their first hug. It did feel like it though. He felt her stiffen and then slowly relax and accept the hug. He could literally feel her tension ease and her woes recede. When he let her go she was smiling again. A comfortable, reassured smile. Score 1 for Nino. _I can’t believe that worked._

 

* * *

 

They spent the rest of their time together that night idly chatting about everything. From school to being a hero, to nothing at all. And they both felt more at ease than they had in a while _._ Marinette was finally comfortable with the fact that he knew, and Nino was on cloud nine at the new, different level of intimacy they shared. Soon though, Nino had to get home. It was late, but they agreed to hang out again over the weekend. He gave her one more warm hug, which was happily returned before leaving the cozy apartment over the bakery.


	6. Loose Ends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette finally faces her partner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOT DANG YALL Ao3 DID NOT WANNA LET ME POST THIS CHAPTER WOWWOWWOW

 

**Buggaboo** **: hey chat it looks p quiet tonight wanna chill for a bit aftr we get done ???**

 

**Chaton** **: suer thing bug! The usual spot?**

 

**Buggaboo** **: yea see ya there!!**

 

Marinette knew she needed to talk to her partner, but what scared her was that she had no idea how he would take it. He never struck her as the jealous type- even if he did _get jealous_ from time to time- but she also knew that rejections suck no matter who you are, and in her opinion, learning your crush likes someone else had to make that approximately 100 percent worse.

 

Marinette had been an absolute mess the whole day. Nino had come over to hang out and they were talking about everything again. He convinced her that she really did need to clear the air with Super Cat- as Nino had taken to calling him- or their team dynamics might take a hit.

 

She spent a lot of time reflecting on the conversations she shared with Nino, actually. It had been three days since Jackady and since that night they had been nearly inseparable. She couldn’t deny what a relief it was to have someone she could be whole with. And she was endlessly grateful that person ended up being Nino. He was the embodiment of chill, and even when he wasn’t, he still managed to put a smile on her face.

 

This little fact wasn’t missed by Tikki either. Or Alya for that matter. The awkward questions started with Tikki Sunday night after he left for the night. The little God had taken to teasing her while she took down her Adrien posters- which she was doing because she got the feeling they made Nino a little uncomfortable. He hadn’t said as much, but she liked to think she was pretty good at reading her friend. But Tikki insisted she might be developing feelings for someone else.

 

“I am not! He’s just spending a lot of time here lately and I don’t want him to feel weird the whole time!”

 

“Okay, but have you considered _why_ they make him feel that way? He is Adrien’s best friend after all.”

 

“What on earth are you getting at Tikki?!?”

 

“He _likes_ you Marinette! It’s so obvious!!”

 

“Tikkkiiiiiii!”

 

(That was the end of that conversation.)

 

And Monday- earlier that day- at school Alya had set in on her about it. Apparently they were sitting too close to each other on the steps that morning, so now obviously they were in love.

 

Mari had to stop on the rooftop she was on and shake her head. Her friends really were too much sometimes. She’s always liked Nino, he’d been her best friend since they were toddlers. But that didn’t mean they were in love with each other!?

 

Well, she had to admit, he had grown up a lot in the last few years. And he was there for her in ways no one else even could be. And she couldn’t deny he was absolutely adorable.

 

Nope.

 

Not doing this.

 

She shook her head and took off to another rooftop. Even if she did like him a tiny itsy-bitsylittle bit, her friends needed to cool it. Besides, that definitely wasn’t what she needed to be thinking about right now.

 

She was on her way to their usual meeting spot to apologize to Chat Noir. She stopped by her balcony to grab the box of pastries she had prepared as an olive branch and made her way there.

 

* * *

 

It was uncommon for Chat to beat his lady back from patrol, but he wasn’t too worried about that tonight. She had said things were looking clear, so she probably just got stopped by some tourists wanting a selfie. That happened fairly often. Most of Paris had agreed they mostly just wanted to stay out of the heroes’ way so they could do their job, but the tourists usually either didn’t know or didn’t care about that element of Parisian Etiquette- it’s not like it was mentioned in the Visit Paris tour books after all.

 

He was nervous though. They hadn’t really had the chance to talk since... well _last time_... and he had no idea what she could be planning tonight.

 

Though, in true Chat Noir fashion, he sat there and quietly hoped it was something positive.

 

He heard her approaching before he saw her, and when he did he was surprised to see she had a very familiar pink pastry box in her hand.

 

“Do I smell the best croissants in all of Paris? Ladybug, you shouldn’t have!” He laughed as she sat down next to him and handed him the box.

 

“You sure do! And they’re just for you.” a small, sad smile graced her face as she turned to look out over their city. “Chat Noir, I owe you an apology.”

 

He nearly choked on his pain au chocolat. Was she serious??

 

“I was really rude to you the other day, and I’ve been avoiding you since because I didn’t know what to do. But that was wrong of me and you didn’t deserve it.” She paused, clearly looking for words in the glow of the street lights below them.

 

“You were honest with me. And instead of being honest with you, I ran away. It was unfair. I want you to know that I’m genuinely sorry about my reaction. You deserve a real answer, not... whatever that was.”

 

She turned to face him and he saw the guilt and concern written over her face. But there was also hope, and a small smile hiding in her eyes. He would never get over how expressive her face could be.

 

“Listen LB, I don’t blame you. It was kind of a big thing to just drop on someone like that. I’m not mad, or even disappointed. You’re my best friend and my partner first and foremost. If it makes you feel better, then I definitely forgive you. But know that I never thought you owed me an apology. I’m just glad we’re getting to talk about it.”

 

“Thanks Chat. That means a lot to me.”

 

They sat in the relative silence of the city for a moment. It was comfortable and felt like things were slowly falling back into place.

 

“So, if you don’t mind my asking, is there someone you like?”

 

She let out a quick, mirthless laugh.

 

“That’s the question isn’t it. Can I be honest with you? Like... without judgment?”

 

You know what they say about cats and curiosity, and that answer definitely had him intrigued.

 

“Of course Bug! That’s what friends are for right!”

 

She eyed him carefully before going on.

 

“I... I’ve had a crush on this boy in my class for most of the year. He just started this year and... well there’s just something special about him. He’s kind and generous and smart and helpful. I feel like a lot of people only like him for his looks and his last name, but he’s so much more than that.” She sighed, and it was filled with too many emotions for Adrien to decipher. “But... I think I may be falling for one of my oldest friends too. He’s always been there for me. We’ve known each other practically forever, and lately he’s been a constant source of reassurance and comfort. We’ve been spending a lot of time together- more than even when we were younger...”

 

He was in awe. The way she looked when she talked about these guys... well, they were really lucky. He wasn’t jealous, of course, he was just grateful that they were able to be this open with each other. No, realizing his feelings for Mari had really helped him not feel so tied to the idea of being with Ladybug. It did amuse him though, that their situations, while sharing their similarities, were once again polar opposites. They really were yin and yang. She liked two guys, and he was in a situation where two guys liked one girl. He didn’t think now was the time to bring that up though. He didn’t want her thinking he had been lying about his feelings when he confessed. Oh wow he should probably say something. Uhhhh.....

 

“I’m sorry Bug, that’s gotta be a rough _spot_. Any idea how they’re _feline_ about you?”

 

To his relief, she giggled then.

 

“Honestly? I have no idea. If you would have asked last week I would have told you A- the one guy didn’t even know I existed, and the other was just a good friend.” She sighed, her face was scrunched- clearly in deep, puzzling thought. “But this last week it seems like everything has been different. With both of them. I feel even closer to my old friend, and the other boy... well he’s definitely noticing me, but it feels like I make him uncomfortable.”

 

“Boys can be weird.” That’s all he said, it’s all he could think to say. He could relate totally. Marinette had always seemed uncomfortable around him- though he now knew it was because of the crush, but he didn’t want to tell Ladybug that, because what if he was wrong? What if it wasn’t the same? He couldn’t imagine anyone who got to know her under the mask disliking her, but it would be just his rotten luck.

 

No, instead, that’s where the conversation ended. They both knew they were gliding real close to that identity line, and neither was trying to push it right now. They sat in a comfortable silence as Chat finished his pastries. With the air finally cleared, they parted ways for the night.

 

* * *

 

As soon as Marinette was home and detransformed she realized that she had a string of several missed texts from Nino.

 

**Ninoo!: hey M ur parents just called lookin for you. Ur on patrol rite???**

 

**Ninoo!: uhhhh uhhhhh**

 

**Ninoo!: i told them you came over here**

 

**Ninoo!: and that you dozed off. That’s why they couldn’t talk to u**

 

**Ninoo!: UUUUGGGGH**

 

**Ninoo!: we should probably establish like.... a real plan for when I need to cover for u**

 

**Ninoo!: now they think ur spending the night**

 

**Ninoo!: so I guess that’s an option if u want ...**

 

**Ninoo!: okay mari imma need you to get back to me ASAP.**

 

**Ninoo!: mariiiiiiiioiioiiii**

 

**Ninoo!: okay okay. Just. Just like lemme know what u wanna do. Mom’s out of town so like there’s no trouble here but dude, please see this b4 just traipsing into your house oh man**

 

 **Ninoo!: I’m so sorry M** **D: >** **I suck at this hardcore**

 

**Ninoo!: I stg mari u had betr be safe ugh**

 

So... that was... unexpected.

 

“Well, Tikki. Looks like we’re going over to Nino’s.”

 

They exchanged a shrug as she shot back a reply, along the lines of “crap, sorry I was talkin to CN! That works don’t worry. If it’s cool I’ll be over in a hot sec!!” And got to work gathering an over night bag. She had stayed the night at Nino’s a million times, at one point they were at each other’s homes more often than their own. This wasn’t exactly uncharted territory, but it was something that they hadn’t done since before hitting that “teenager” mark.

 

She made sure to grab some of her stash of cookies for Tikki and made her way up to her balcony to head out.

 

Thankfully, she got the hatch closed quietly before she turned around, because when she did she was met with the big, green, very confused, eyes of Chat Noir.

 

“Wah! W-what are you doing here?!”

 

“I just came by to see how my favorite civilian was doing... but I have to say, I think I’m the less suspicious of the two of us right now. What are you doing?”

 

“I.. I’m supposed to be at a friends house right now... buut I... forgot something so I snuck back to get it and was just about to leave again...?”

 

“And you plan on leaving... from your balcony?”

 

“Uh... yes.”

 

“Marinette.”

 

This could have been much easier if that darn cat hadn’t shown up. But at the same time, she was glad it was her who found him and not her parents, so she couldn’t be as irritated as she would have liked. Marinette was honestly stressed and she didn’t want to worry Nino, so she really needed to go.

 

“Listen, I was over at Nino’s house working on homework earlier and I fell asleep on his couch, so when my parents called to check in they told him to just let me sleep and that I should just stay over for the night. I woke up a little later and needed clothes for tomorrow and my toothbrush so I came back to get it. Now I’m trying to go back so my parents actually know where I am.” She really hated lying, but at least this was the exact story everyone else knew too.

 

There was a beat of silence, there was something heavy in it but she assumed it was just in her head.

 

“Okay. Well since I’m here how about I take you? Ladybug and I have already patrolled tonight, but it’s never safe for a pretty girl like you to be out on her own after sun-down.”

 

Mari mentally weighed her options, the way she saw it, he could get her there just as fast as Ladybug could, and now that he knew where she was going he would probably trail her even if she didn’t accept to make sure Marinette didn’t get hurt, so it’s not like Ladybug was a real option at this stage- even if she would much prefer it that way. She sighed.

 

“Okay, I guess. Why not?”

 

She sent a text to Nino letting him know she was on her way. Next thing she knew she was being held bridal style and racing across the rooftops of Paris.

 

“So princess, spending the night at a boy’s house huh? I would be more than willing to stay and defend your honor” she could hear the sly smirk in his voice even if she couldn’t properly see his face. Unfortunately, the annoyance she felt was not enough to dissuade the heavy pink blooming across her cheeks. She hadn’t even considered how this would look from the outside. That revelation really frazzled her though, because all she was able to get out was a jumbled mess along the lines of “what no me? Nino! No how what no”

 

“Whoa there _purr_ incess, it was a joke, don’t worry. Besides, I though you liked Model Boy.”

 

“I.. well.. you see.. that’s... its complicated. And none of your business!” She was really flustered now. She did NOT want to have this exact conversation with him, on _both sides of her mask_ , in **one night**.

 

Luckily for her they were almost to Nino’s apartment building now, so this train wreck was almost over.

 

Unluckily, however, when they got there they found him waiting on the roof.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow so if you made it through that, I am sorry LadyNoir babs, I feel you but its not in the cards for this fic
> 
> Does this one feel real short to yall? I whacked this off of the end of the last chapter because that one was too long imo but i think it might have left this a lil short <:D


	7. On The Roof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mari Is spending the night with Nino, and Chat has Feelings About It.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! Another exciting chapter!

Nino was having quite the evening. Quite the day actually.

 

He had hung out with Marinette for a good while earlier in the day and finally convinced her to talk to Chat Noir. It felt weird to be giving advice that even remotely involved her love-life given his position, but he hated watching the guilt play across her face every time her partner was brought up- which happened a lot, considering. He understood where she was coming from and from the few interactions he had with Chat and his general understanding of guys as a whole, he could confidently reassure her that if she just explained her situation, everything would be fine.

 

Well, she finally agreed with him and promised to take care of it as soon as possible for everyone’s sake. As far as he was concerned he had met his “responsible friend” quota for the day.

 

He had planned on spending the rest of his evening working on a new mix and getting to bed early so he could have time to get Mari a coffee from her favorite shop before their now customary wake-up call the next day. Around sunset though, those plans were blown out of the water when he received a call from a fairly concerned Sabine.

 

Now, Nino was good at a lot of things, but lying was not one of them. Despite that, he still managed to craft a believable story to get Marinette off the hook, but boy did he feel gross about it. By the end of his short phone call, he had shot out eight different texts to Mari, and more came after they hung up. He was fairly certain she was out on patrol, and the lack of prompt response reaffirmed that for him.

 

He just had to hope that she saw the messages before anything ridiculous happened.

 

Around half an hour later he finally got a response- which eased his still churning anxiety, until he realized that now Marinette was actually going to be spending the night at his house. He hadn’t considered that might actually happen, and suddenly his stomach was in knots again. Well... good knots. The kind of anxious you get when your crush is involved. You know.

 

Well a few minutes later he got the “on my way” message and figured he’d wait for Ladybug on the roof. The sun had set now so that was almost definitely how she would be arriving. That’s how he would travel at least.

 

He didn’t visit his apartment roof very often, but it was a nice night out and the city did look very pretty all lit up. He made a mental note to spend more time up there in the future as he leaned over the railing to enjoy the breeze.

 

He soon noticed a silhouette approaching over the roof line. He watched it get closer, bouncing from rooftop to rooftop. Soon, he could make out the basic shape, but it was not what he was expecting.

 

You see, Nino was prepared to see one superhero tonight. Looking forward to it even. But he was not prepared to see two of them. And definitely not one super hero cradling another super hero’s alter ego bridal style.

 

Nino was shook. This was not in the plans. He had no idea what he was supposed to do or say, so instead he pretended he hadn’t noticed them and focused extra hard on taking in the view and ignoring his decidedly not chill internal monologue.

 

_He... he wasn’t jealous. No, that would be silly. It’s just Chat Noir. Mari doesn’t like him like that. He probably just showed up on her balcony again and... and offered to escort her over. Yeah that’s gotta be it. Besides, Chat likes Ladybug right? Oh god. No. What if... no, it couldn’t be. They JUST talked about it all today. There’s no way he could be over Ladybug that quickly. Let alone fall for someone entirely different as far as he knew. Oh god man. Not cool. Chill. You’re waaay overthinking this. They’re pals. They’ve been pals for a hot second. This is almost definitely just a friendly thing. Cool it._

 

He had not, in fact, managed to cool it by the time they landed on his building. Thankfully he had however mastered the art of using a beefy layer of outer chill to mask his inner super-duper-not-chill-at-all a long time ago.

 

“Oh wow! Hey Chat Noir!”

 

* * *

 

Adrien knew he was being irrational. He knew Nino and so he knew he would never do anything inappropriate to Mari, especially without her express consent. But he still couldn’t shake the oddly possessive feeling brewing in his gut. He supposed it was probably the cat in him- especially since was was actively in the suit. The tendencies _were_ always more pronounced while transformed.

 

He knew Nino and Mari had been spending a lot of time together lately. He actually knew this really well, because they ran off together leaving him and Alya to chill on their own a lot last weekend. He wasn’t bothered really, he enjoyed Alya’s company, but he was starting to really fear just how observant she was. They were talking one day when they had been left on their own for lunch and to his utter horror he learned that Alya had picked up on his crush on Marinette the very same day he realized it was a thing himself. He also learned that while she hadn’t had the chance to really talk to Mari about it, she could tell that Mari was really confused about how she was feeling. She had apologized, stating that she had been on team Adrienette for a long time, but couldn’t really help out now, at least not until she got the chance to actually talk to Mari face-to-face.

 

The general take away though was that the odds were no longer entirely in his favor, and while he had quietly told himself he wouldn’t actively pursue her out of respect for Nino, he was holding onto the hope that she would choose him in the end. But this apparent shift in Marinette’s interest had him concerned to say the least.

 

He wasn’t ready to say the situation had changed completely, so he wasn’t comfortable outwardly flirting with her... not as Adrien for sure... but he didn’t see any reason why Chat Noir couldn’t snoop. They were pals after all, and it made sense that one’s super hero pal would be concerned for their safety.

 

“So princess, spending the night at a boy’s house huh? I would be more than willing to stay and defend your honor” he put on his trademark smirk to hide his very real concern.

 

His heart dropped a little when she got as flustered as she did, but he reminded himself that this was pure, sweet, cinnamon roll Marinette and she probably hadn’t even considered that kind of thing a possibility and that notion comforted him considerably.

 

If he would have dropped it there, what came next wouldn’t have been so.... tense. But he just had to slip in a joke about her crush on him. Less than a week ago he could have counted on her response filling him with pink bubbles and soft light but instead what he got tore him up.

 

“I.. well.. you see.. that’s... its complicated. And none of your business!” Man, she was so pink. A horrible charade of guilt, indecision, uncertainty, and embarrassment played across her cute little face and it wrecked him. She really was getting closer to Nino. She really was moving on. God, if only there was something he could do. He didn’t want to have to move on again. Not so soon.

 

And then they were on Nino’s roof. And he was there- for some reason. He greeted them with a distinctively chill air of surprise, but Adrien could tell he was using his forced chill. The two had spent enough time together that they could tell when each other was hiding behind their respective facades.

 

There was a beat of silence between them in which Chat instinctively and imperceptibly clutched Marinette tighter to him. God he really was possessive. _Thanks Plagg_.

 

Soon he caught sight of two beautiful bluebells out of the corner of his eye. Mari was peering up at him and then nervously chuckled “you can let me down now, Chaton.” And he reluctantly had to let her go.

 

“So what are you doing up here, Nino?” He was eyeing his friend suspiciously again. Why _was_ he on the roof? That didn’t exactly add up.

 

“Oh! I was watching for Mari. I figured from here I would be able to see her a little farther down the street so I’d be able to go down to meet her at the door.” He was scratching the back of his neck nervously and Adrien was pretty sure he was lying- but why he would lie to Chat was beyond him so he left it alone.

 

“Ah! That’s so cool of you Nino! Sorry if we spooked you!” This time it was Mari’s sweet voice that filled his ears. “Thanks again for the lift Chat! I got here so much faster!”

 

He watched her gather her bag and walk away to stand by Nino. He couldn’t help but think that he was probably projecting some unintended symbolism on that moment, but it stuck with him anyway.

 

“Hey Mari, can I actually talk to Nino for a sec?” He had no idea what he was doing.

 

“Oh... uh... sure? Nino is your door unlocked?”

 

“Uhh yeah dude yeah, I guess I’ll be down in a bit.”

 

“Chat Noir, please don’t say anything embarrassing!” And with that she left the two boys alone.

 

This was... tense. And uncomfortable. Why did he do that again??? Oh yeah...

 

* * *

 

Nino really didn’t know what to do. Or like... what he had done? But as soon as the roof door closed behind Marinette, Chat Noir’s face cracked and Nino could tell that he was like... really actually bothered by something.

 

It was... intense. It wasn’t an anger- at least that wasn’t the vibe he got- but it was sort of like an intense dread. A concern that had gripped the leather clad hero by the gut and made his whole being radiate sadness, disappointment.

 

“Nino.Is she important to you?”

 

Nino really REALLY wished that this question had surprised him. He did not like where this was going.

 

“Uh yeah, very important.”

 

His shoulders seemed to slump- it was nearly imperceptible and Nino was sure if he hadn’t already been over analyzing his body language he would have missed it. It didn’t last long either, because as he spoke next, he seemed to puff up. He was posturing now. Doing that thing guys do where they try to look bigger to intimidate or assert dominance.

 

Nino felt a bit like a turtle. He wanted to climb into his shell and avoid what would come next. He had his theories but he really, REALLY hoped he was wrong.

 

“Nino. I trust you, I know you’re a good person and that is the only reason I willingly brought her here tonight.” Nino had to suppress the shudder that was trying to crawl down his spine, now he was sure he was right about at least one thing. “Nino, she’s really important to me too. So just know that if I find out you hurt her, in any way at any time, you’ll have to answer to me.”

 

It was everything Nino had not to laugh at that. Both out of sheer “I knew it”-ness and also because let’s face it, if he even considered hurting her, Paris’s Number Two Hero would have to wait in line behind Paris’s Number One Hero herself.

 

“Listen, Chat. I appreciate your concern, I really do. But I would never even think of doing anything to hurt Marinette. She’s my oldest, closest friend and I am in love with her. So, like, thanks for that little reminder my dude, but you really have nothing to worry about.” Nino sealed the deal with a nonchalant shrug, “besides, I already promised my boy Adrien I wouldn’t make any moves because she’s gotta choose who she wants to be with on her own.”

 

Chat Noir regarded him for a moment. Then finally he let the act fall. His face read as somewhat guilty, but largely reassured.

 

“Thanks dude. Sorry. I was just worried.”

 

Nino was mentally drained. He really just wanted to go in, turn on some tunes, and hit the sack. He figured Mari wouldn’t mind but he had to actually get inside before any of that would become an option. He sighed.

 

“You’re a chill dude, Super Cat, and it’s been great, but I’m gonna go in now. I promise you don’t have anything to worry about.”

 

And with that Nino retreated inside. The night was uneventful. He and Marinette talked about the conversation she had with Chat earlier and he... sorta... told her about the conversation he just had. But they were both tired so he turned on Planet Earth and they were out for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These are good boys, but the tension is real. 
> 
> We haven't heard from Alya in a while hmmm...
> 
> WhAt CoUlD hApPeN nExT >:D


	8. Dismay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I dunno, Alya and Mari talk and some stuff happens, like... yanno, cool stuff?

Despite being mentally and emotionally drained, Marinette found that sleep just wasn’t in the cards for her that night.

 

After a brief, slightly awkward- and she was sure not entirely complete- conversation about the events of the day, the two had agreed it was about time to lay down. Nino had been cool enough to offer her the bed and even forwent his usual ritual of putting on what he deemed “the slickest jams to chill to”, instead turning on Planet Earth- all in an effort to make her more comfortable. She gave him a good-night-hug that she hoped was loaded with all the appreciate she felt towards him in that moment and they parted to their respective sleeping arrangements.

 

And she was endlessly grateful, she really was. But as it happened, she had entirely too much going on in her head and it was too persistent and loud to tune out.

 

No instead, Nino passed out about 20 minutes into the show and she was left alone to wade through the muck clogging her brain.

 

Chat Noir had been really weird. Nino too. Heck she’d been weird. She basically told Chat Noir she might have a crush on Nino!!! TWICE.

 

None of today had been normal by any stretch. She was reeling from the sheer amount of “what.” What she finally landed on though, was just how much she appreciated Nino. He had always been an amazing friend to her, and he was handling her super-heroine-ism very well. Way better than she did in the beginning. That’s for sure.

 

She wasn’t sure how late it was but she eventually- thankfully- fell asleep after getting lost in the rhythmic sounds of Nino’s quiet snoring.

 

* * *

 

 

They were both tired at school that morning. All in all they had actually gone to sleep much earlier than they were each accustomed to, but they had been so exhausted by the end of the day that it felt like much later than it was.

 

Nino knew it was going to be a long day simply by virtue of how tired he still was. And to make matters worse people seemed to somehow know that they had spent the night together.

 

People meaning Adrien and Alya.

 

It wasn’t unusual to see the two of them walk to school together anymore and yet somehow both of their friends had figured it out annoyingly fast none the less.

 

Nino could tell that Alya was whispering about it to Mari in class. He really hoped she wasn’t giving her a hard time. Especially since this was definitely his fault in the first place.

 

But what really bothered him was how.... nonchalant? Adrien was being. It was like he had known before they even showed up or something. He wasn’t surprised and he wasn’t asking about it or anything. But he also didn’t seem mad? Nino was way confused but he did NOT want to start something and he definitely didn’t want to be grilled like Marinette was. So he shrugged it off and did his best to focus on the lessons.

 

Tried. Failed, bad. But boy did he try. No his head was a little pre-occupied with the notion that Marinette just spent the night at his house. _Yeah that was just now hitting him._ They were sleeping less than three feet from each other- not counting the difference of height between the bed and his make-shift pallet on the floor. She _hugged him before they went to sleep._ He had dreamed that they were snuggled together in his bed and that dream wove it’s way through his memory of the night and stole all of the attention he could muster in his current exhaustion.

 

* * *

 

 

Marinette couldn’t deny that the assumptions and accusations Alya had been throwing at her made her more than a little uncomfortable. But she also couldn’t help but be glad that she finally had a reasonable excuse to request some girl time. God she needed to talk to Alya.

 

It felt like everything had changed so fast. Suddenly she wasn’t just grossly in love with The Adrien Agrest™️ and she wasn’t alone in her double life of super heroism and her partner in crime fighting wasn’t clawing for her attention and affection and she was developing feelings for her oldest friend- and in some small way for her feline accomplice but BOY did she NOT want to deal with THAT right now- and she just really _really_ needed to talk to Alya.

 

It was to her great relief that Alya announced to the boys that the two of them would be doing their own thing at lunch. She really wasn’t sure how she would explain to either of them that she really just needed some time alone with Alya. Especially without hurting feelings.

 

Alya was always good at that though. The whole establishing plans without hurting anyone thing.

 

And so it was that they found themselves in her room with a plate full of sandwiches and pastries and a whole heap of nonsense to talk through.

 

* * *

 

 

“So, let me get this straight."

 

"Okay."

 

"You like Adrien?"

 

"Yes."

 

"You like Nino?"

 

"Yes,"

 

"You just... don’t know who you like more?”

 

“Yes, Alya. That’s the problem! They’re both so wonderful and amazing in their own ways!! How could I possibly choose one over the other!?”

 

Marinette had buried her head in the pillow of her chaise almost immediately after the conversation started, only popping up long enough to spill another round of word-vomit on Alya’s lap before retreating again. But Alya had to admit, her penchant for melodrama was easily her favorite thing about Marinette. It added to her charm.

 

As of right now though, she was on a mission, and her pig-tailed friend wasn’t making the interrogation easy. She could tell she was in some way ashamed of having feelings for more than one person, but she couldn’t get the girl to lean one way or the other!

 

“Oof. Well, listen girl, I have it on good authority that they’re both fairly into you. So like, take your time yanno? Spend some time with each of them and try to figure out whose company you enjoy more.” Alya had set her hand on Mari’s shoulder, and was now lightly petting her hair. She really did hate to see her so upset. “Who knows, maybe if you try to spend more time with them, one will become a clear winner for you? You don’t have to rush these things, girl. Just let it happen.”

 

When Marinette finally looked up from her pillowy hideaway she had a small smile on her face. The one that meant Alya had said something that really connected. Alya had always liked that smile the most.

 

After a little while, and more chatter about entirely too many things- man, it felt like forever since they had spent time together like this, just talking- it was time to go back to school for the afternoon.

 

Alya had determined that she was going to have to make a call soon. She knew the clock was ticking now and eventually she would have to pick a side. Marinette was truly remarkable in a lot of ways, but she was never especially good at making moves in the romance department. So it wasn’t unreasonable to assume that before the end of this she would need to be able to give an honest opinion of the two suitors. It was time to start asking questions.

 

* * *

 

 

Marinette had also made some decisions during their conversation. She knew she wanted to be fair- to the boys and to her heart- in figuring things out. She also knew that there was one thing she couldn’t talk to Alya about; a certain leather-clad cat boy, and so he needed to be dealt with first. After all, with the other two, Alya’s advice had been patience, so it’s not like she would be rushing her to make any moves just yet.

 

She ran through all of this on their walk back from lunch. They passed Max and Kim running out of the courtyard and she realized she was much more confident than she had been when she left- despite still being deeply unsure of a lot of things- because at least now she knew she wasn’t a terrible person. At least now she knew a general plan of action. At least now she could look at the two most important boys in her life without feeling like a jerk. At least now there was... _an Akuma in her classroom?!_

 

* * *

 

 

Adrien hadn’t seen what happened exactly. All he knew for sure was that he had seen a blonde girl from another class that he only sorta recognized run across the courtyard crying, and then a few minutes later, there she was again only this time she was dressed in a dress comprised of varying shades of blue and grey with broken hearts dotting the hemlines. Definitely an Akuma. The whole get up had a vaguely Alice in Wonderland vibe- short poofy blue dress, light grey apron, frilly sleeves, short white gloves and a very dark blue bow in her hair.

 

He didn’t even have to stick around for the whole monologue to get the gist of what happened though.As far as he could gather, she had confessed her feelings to Kim and he had laughed at her. Now she was going to make it so that all anyone could feel was sadness- yanno, because laughter hurts or something.

 

Anyway she called herself Dismay and he was out. He had to find a place to transform quick, because she was clearly looking for Kim. He found an empty closet down one of the hallways neat his class and changed as fast as he could, but by the time he emerged he saw her entering his the room he knew at least a handful of his friends were in.

 

It was a mess honestly. Rose was screaming, Max and Kim has upended thee table to hide behind it while Ivan and Nathaniel were turned into blue toned, tear stained, zombie versions of themselves. Luckily it didn’t seem like the zombies could really do anything? They were more like big sad blue statues than the minions some Akumas made.

 

His observations we cut short when he heard Rose yell “Chat Noir!!!” as she was hit with the blue zombie light and Dismay finally noticed him.

 

“Whoa, Why so Blue little missy?” He needed time and hoped that getting her to monologue again would be enough time to figure out what to do. Unfortunately it would seem that she had already said her piece.

 

“Like you care!” She choked out and this time sent a beam of blue light hurling right at him.

 

He dodged as gracefully as he could, bounding off desks until he landed behind the table with Kim and Max. A quick and dirty plan formed in his head- Ladybug was really the tactical mind of the two of them, but he did his best.

 

“I need you two to get out of here and get Kim somewhere safe.”

 

“That would be great but the current statistical odds of managing it are decidedly low right now”

 

“I know. That’s why I’m going to distract her. When I have her attention I want you two to grab the table like a shield and run for the door. The Dupain-Chang bakery is close enough and I doubt she would check there so that’s where you’re going once you’re out.”

 

Max and Kim exchanged a nervous look and then agreed.

 

He leapt out of hiding and made some puns while dodging her attacks but generally keeping her attention in the opposite direction of his friends. He was actually fairly surprised this was working. Max and Kim both made it out of the classroom, and now it was time to actually start launching his counter attacks.

 

He got a few good hits in but his goal changed fast when he looked up and saw Marinette and Alya standing in the doorway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the impromptu hiatus. I moved across the country and started a new job and life has been a mess. I also have been trying really hard to wait and watch the new episodes when they come out on Netflix and like, the only way to avoid spoilers is to just not go on the sites that could spoil things (like Ao3 and Tumblr)
> 
> Buuuut I decided i dont care about spoilers, they're only gonna make me more excited anyway, so I have climbed out of my cave to gift you a new chapter. Its part filler while I re-establish where I want my plot to go and part fairly important, i think. So I hope you enjoy??????? 
> 
> I'd love to hear from you in the comments below :D


	9. Little Victories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day isn't complete without an akuma attack is it?   
> They certainly have a way of spicing things up.

Things always seemed to happen fast when there was an Akuma on the loose. This time was proving to be no different.

 

Alya had caught sight of Chat Noir and booked it yelling about how she had somehow managed to leave her phone in her locker, leaving Marinette alone in front of her class full of overturned desks, seemingly petrified blue version of her friends, and a hero and villain trading blows. She needed to get away. She needed to transform. But it would seem she wasn’t going to have the time for that. It wouldn’t take long for Alya to return, and Chat Noir had already seen her. Both of them would be horrified if she was suddenly untraceable- even if it did mean the swift appearance of their favorite heroine. She was effectively stuck.

 

The scene in front of her was not a pleasant one. Her presence was obviously distracting Chat, as his hits quickly became less focused, landing only occasionally and never with the grace and precision he was known for. More concerning was that the Akuma was getting much closer to actually landing her blows.

 

Too close. Way too close. Oh god she hit him. It was a solid blow to the chest. He had leapt to grab at a ring on her right hand- Marinette could only assume that must be where the Akuma was hiding- and left his torso open to the harsh knee she sent flying his way. He was reeling and she was clearly winding up for her next attack.

 

Mari couldn’t watch anymore. She had to take action- suit or no suit- so she grabbed for the first thing she could find and ended up lobbing a textbook at the Akuma while she had her back turned. It hit her square between the shoulders and must have hurt too because she let out the most pitiful wail Mari had ever heard.

 

It was effective in distracting Dismay from Chat, but now the attention was all on her and she was powerless. So she ran. She booked it down the stairs and across the courtyard as fast as she could, narrowly dodging the waves of incandescent blue light that were barreling towards her. As she roundedthe corner out the doors she was suddenly grabbed from behind and hoisted up into the air. It didn’t take her long to realize her kitty had caught up to her, she didn’t know anyone else as strong and simultaneously gentle.

 

They were vaulting across the city at a breakneck speed, Dismay’s wailing growing ever softer as they fled. Neither of them said anything. She was flustered, being carried like this while not in costume always had that affect on her, but she couldn’t manage to figure out why her usually witty and talkative partner was so suddenly stoic. Well at least not until they landed on the roof of a nondescript building and he let her stand on her own two feet, his hands resting on her shoulders.

 

“Princess,” his tone was sharp, it felt a bit like when your parents say your name right before they scold you, “please, never do that again.”

 

“What?” She had just helped him right? Did she miss something? From what she saw he had been about to be hit with a big ole K.O.

 

“I appreciate you trying to help, I really do. And you’re gonna have to tell me where such a small person gets a throwing arm like that, but please please don’t ever scare me like that again.”

 

It was then that she noticed that he had been shaking. Wow, he was really worried about her. Well that explains why they went so, so far away from the situation. She looked up at him with the kindest of eyes, appreciating her partner in a way she never quite had before- though still very annoyed.

 

“I will never promise not to help a friend.”

 

“Mari, please.”

 

“No! You were in trouble! She was about to turn you into one of those zombies!! How could I just stand there and let that happen?!” She was yelling but it wasn’t anger that elevated her tone, not really. She was mostly just frustrated at how complicated her feelings were. She knew- no matter how deeply she wanted to deny it- that there was something about Chat that she absolutely adored. And she hated how much it had scared her to see him fighting on his own. She knew he could handle himself, he was a very skilled fighter after all, but something about the way she had distracted him terrified her. In her heart she knew this was why she cared so deeply about their identities staying secret, and why she had wanted to keep their out of costume contact to a minimum, but in practice... she just couldn’t bring herself to regret getting close to him as herself. His friendship was too valuable. “Chat, I need you, the city of Paris needs you, Ladybug Needs You! I couldn’t live with myself if I watched you get hurt and did nothing.”

 

* * *

 

Something inside of Adrien snapped. He hadn’t _really_ had a chance to properly process the very real fear of losing his Lady to Animan, and then when he finally moved on from his unattainable crush, his Princess had to go and endanger herself too.

 

Marinette was quickly becoming one of the most important people in his life; he was utterly enamored with her. To see her in real, eminent danger was almost too much. But she had gotten away. She outran the Akuma and he had been able to get her even farther away. She was as safe as she could be right now and yet he still felt like he was about to break down right in front of her.

 

Maybe it was the fact that he couldn’t honestly argue with what she was saying. Maybe it was the way she looked at him. Maybe it was the fact that he _mattered_ to her- she had just said so herself.

 

He wasn’t sure what exactly drive him to it, but in a split second of pure emotion, he did something he swore he wouldn’t do.

 

He kissed her.

 

He was shaking. Tears had already slipped past his eyelids and were rolling slowly down his mask. He was terrified and relieved and grateful and annoyed and touched all at once and it had been too much. He had lost his self control and now all he could feel was her soft, sweet lips pressed gently against his.

 

It was short and gentle and in all reality probably no more than a peck, but it had felt to him like it had lasted hours.

 

When his spirit finally returned to his body he finally saw her face. It was the most lovely shade of pink. Her bluebell eyes were wide and a mix of shock, embarrassment, and contentment seemed to dance across them. She was slowly turning more and more pink as realization seemed to dawn on her.

 

“Chat... I.... *sigh* you should probably go deal with that Akuma, shouldn’t you?” Her smile was soft- still slightly dazed and almost a little sad. It told him that they were going to have to talk about it later. He sighed, at least she would be safe here, and he would be sure to steer the battle away from this side of town.

 

“You’re right. I shouldn’t keep Ladybug waiting.” And with that he vaulted away.

 

* * *

 

Marinette collapsed. She figured she owed it to her city to take a moment to compose herself before swinging into action, anyway.

 

That was... a lot.

 

It was... so sudden.

 

She was.... a mess.

 

She took a deep breath as Tikki emerged from her purse.

 

“Are you okay, Marinette?” Her small voice was always so comforting.

 

“Yes. I’m okay. I’m... going to have to figure some things out, but that can wait. We have bigger issues right now.”

 

All in all they had only been on that rooftop for a few minutes, but with everything that had happened it felt like it had been hours. Marinette stood up and slapped herself to hopefully regain a sense of focus. After a deep breath she called for her transformation and swung off towards the commotion.

 

* * *

 

It had only taken Alya a moment to find her phone, but by the time she was exiting the locker room it seemed the situation had changed drastically.

 

Chat Noir was no where to be found- neither was Marinette for that matter, but she was always good at disappearing when Akumas struck- and the Akuma, Dismay apparently, was sobbing (screaming?) about how everyone leaves her in the end or something.

 

Alya did her best to stay hidden, she didn’t want to be hit with whatever that light was, but she wouldn’t let safety get in the way of live-streaming the events to her blog.

 

It didn’t take long for everyone left in the school to be turned into the same sad blue zombies and Alya was frustrated that her heroes weren’t there yet. That’s what she came for after all.

 

It was agonizing. She followed Dismay out of the school yard and into the street where she turned more and more people, but still no sign of either hero. She was starting to get really worried. It never took them this long to show up to an attack. And Chat has already been there before! Where was he?!

 

At least without anyone facing against her, Dismay seemed to be content making everyone miserable without inflicting too much damage to person or property, but this was still getting out of hand. Alya had been able to surmise that Dismay was looking for Kim but only because she wanted everyone- ESPECIALLY him- to feel the same sadness she did, but neither she nor Dismay seemed to know where he would be hiding.

 

Alya was about to take matters into her own hands when she finally heard the tell-tale thwack of a baton hitting pavement.

 

“Didya miss me, Blue?” Chat Noir smirked as he sat atop his baton in the middle of the street between Dismay and Alya’s hiding place.

 

It was like someone flipped a switch inside of the blue toned villain. Her melancholy sadness suddenly became vicious anger.

 

Alya was just glad she was able to get the whole fight on camera. Chat did a number on the Akuma by himself, but the pace picked up significantly a few minutes later when Ladybug finally swung in.

 

* * *

 

Nino had been watching the livestream from the very beginning.

 

Over lunch he had gone home because the novelty of waking up with Marinette there that morning had caused him to forget to grab some of the homework he had due that day, and he had been so exhausted that he had fallen asleep for a short nap. When he woke up, even running full speed he would have missed the bell by a few minutes so he had decided to just take his time and enjoy being late. Just this once.

 

It hadn’t been a particularly eventful stream. He was sure anyone else watching would have been fairly bored until the last few minutes. But he- knowing what he did- was terrified. Where was Ladybug was an easy question to ask. Where was Marinette was not.

 

But that wasn’t honestly what had him so transfixed by the end. It was how... awkward LB and Chat were being with one another. Or well... how awkward Maribug was being with _Chat_ specifically.

 

Every time she looked at him she seemed to stumble. Every time she spoke to him she stuttered.

 

It was like she was embarrassed about something but Nino, for the life of him, couldn’t figure out what it would be. What possibly could have changed since morning classes?

 

He wanted to talk to her. To ask. But he was worried he wouldn’t like the answer.

 

No, that’s not fair.

 

Not to himself, or to her.

 

He owed it to her to be a shoulder and an ear and a friend when things were weird for her. He knew that, and he was going to do his very best. But he was becoming more and more aware of how badly he needed to make his feelings known. He had to tell her how he felt- even if she couldn’t or wouldn’t ever reciprocate- before it was too late.

 

As the stream wrapped up he headed out of his building. The teachers were always lenient about tardiness when an Akuma was involved so he wasn’t in any particular hurry, he just wanted to be as close to Marinette as he could- as soon as possible.

 

So naturally it was a pleasant surprise when he heard a certain specific zipping sound and saw a flash of pink light coming from the alley just ahead of him.

 

He pulled a bag of frosted animal crackers out of his bag as he turned the corner to find Mari talking quietly into her bag where he knew Tikki was likely already hiding.

 

“Mari! Heads up!” He tossed her the sweets and couldn’t help but laugh at the small squeak she made in response. He hadn’t meant to startle her, but it was so cute that he couldn’t truthfully regret it.

 

“Unfair! You can’t just scare me and solve my problem at the same time!” She was laughing now too. He figured she wouldn’t have enough cookies on her. She tried, but Tikki was insatiable and the spares Mari tried to keep for her never lasted more than an hour. That’s actually why he had been carrying the snacks in the first place.

 

“Wanna walk back to school with me?” It wasn’t exactly smooth but he needed an opening. “You seem off. We could talk about it on the way?”

 

She was quiet for a minute, clearly deep in thought until finally she smiled and replied “That sounds... perfect, actually. Thank you Nino.”

 

They took their time, going the more scenic route back to school than the direct one. It was a good thing too because Marinette seemed to have a lot on her mind. She recounted everything that had happened- she didn’t leave anything out- and his stomach was in knots.

 

He had figured he had to count Chat Noir as a contender but he hadn’t figured he would be so forward. I mean how long had it taken him to say anything to Ladybug and _everyone_ could see how he felt about her.

 

He pushed it all down though. He was sure now wasn’t the time. He was beginning to think he needed to accelerate his timeline, but _now wasn’t the time._

 

No, right now all he needed to do was comfort his friend and make sure she was okay. His issues could be sorted out with time, but how could he claim to care about her if he couldn’t be there for her in times like these?

 

And so comfort her he did. They talked and chatted and walked, phasing in and out of a comfortable silence and eventually even began joking with one another. It was so easy being together.

 

“You really are amazing, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

 

“Hahah what? Nino, come on, stop.” She turned an adorable shade of pink as she laughed, nudging his shoulder playfully.

 

“No I mean it. You’re fearless, you would do anything for just about anyone in AND out of costume.”

 

She was quiet in response, a small smile graced her lips and the blush spread all the way to her ears.

 

“I mean, you’re probably the single greatest person in all of Paris. It’s not wonder ole Catboy kissed you. I can’t think of many people who wouldn’t. I know I would have.”The last part had been quieter than the rest, and it was now Nino’s turn to blush. He hadn’t meant for her to hear it, but she clearly had. Her expression was surprised, and embarrassed, but also flattered and... almost glad?

 

She had looked like she was about to say something when they realized they were already at the school. The stood there for a moment, neither really wanting to go in, but both knowing they had to.

 

Finally, breaking the tension, Mari hugged him.

 

“We should get to class. But... maybe we can hang out some more after school? Maman did say you have a permanent invitation to dinner.”

 

“Yeah, yeah that sounds rad. Let’s... let’s get to class.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone, please! I need comments! Critique! Questions! Opinions! Anything! 
> 
> Lol I hope you've enjoyed everything so far, because things are spiraling out of control.

**Author's Note:**

> Just as a quick end note: Please dont take this to mean that I dont like DJWifi, cause holy cow they're amazing!!!!! I just wanted to explore what it would be like if Animan had happened... differently?


End file.
